Law Merchant and Anarchy

Here is a good review of the history of the formation of governments with references to the law merchant as an example of order from chaos.  The latter half spends time on anglo-saxon law development.  It is very much worth a read.

Most anarchists have trouble identifying quite where we make the mistake of moving from freedom to government oppression, which I find interesting because like so many of these things, it is simple.  In fact, we have a very old lesson on this topic, and example, in 1 Samuel 8.  We are going along quite well with our inalienable right to freedom, when for whatever reason, people demand a king or some sort of leader.  God himself argued against it, but relented, and gave Israel a king..  Israel never quite recovered.  But then every country does the same thing, the Jews have merely the first recorded instance.  Every law passed is just the most recent recorded instance.

The Anglo-Saxons began accreting power to leaders among themselves, and of course such leaders begin to gain more property, power and wealth, an upward spiral to exceptional wealth.  At some point Vikings began raiding Britain, after these power bases formed.

Now pause for a second...  why would Vikings venture all the by by Sea from Denmark to raid Britain? They of course made a cost/benefit analysis that England was the best target for pillage, well worth the effort.  How come?  Why because of the concentration of wealth.  By the very act repudiating their inalienable rights, Englishmen guaranteed eventually the exceptional, concentrated wealth would draw in pillaging Vikings.  And so it did.

Had Englishmen not given up their rights, Viking scouts would have found perhaps cheap dental care and a fine meal, widely available.  Not much to steal, but good.  Plenty of options at a low price, but no exceptional wealth. In fact, since velocity of money would be high, it would not be concentrated, and there would really be no way to steal at the level that attracts pillagers.  Any attempt to sit on the system would lead to a dearth that in time would discourage the Vikings, and encourage them to raid the next best target, say Portugal.

Indeed, instead of cheap dental care and a fine meal, England to this day is known for bad teeth and lousy cuisine.  No wonder Chef Ramsay is so rude and angry.

Japan took captured Hong Kong in WWII, but there was really nothing to take, as opposed to Shanghai and Manila.  Hong Kong suffered under the Japanese, although nothing like Shanghai or Nanjing.  The best protection against pillage is a free market.

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