Re: The Glorious One returns

waytoogay wrote:pozzie wrote:Is it me or does the world envisioned by wtg seem awfully reminiscent of the Americas before those pesky, pesty Europeans showed up?
The Amerindians mostly existed in a state of primordial communism with no property rights and a perpetual war of all against all. It's interesting how you got that from private property and nonaggression.
Well, guess it depends on how one defines "private property" and I'm not sure "state of perpetual war of all against all" was a universal experience, especially in terms of the millennia in which they lived here before the arrival of avaricious Europeans. The Amerindian experience varies widely: as widely as the land varies between Tierra del Fuego and The North Slope. However, I'm unclear how we could convince people who currently are used to taking whatever they want to forego that option with a simple pronouncement of "private property and nonaggression." After all, even with land surveys, public records, and deeds, we aren't free from such disagreements and even under threat of imprisonment, people still act out on such disagreements in ways that may ultimately result in violence.
Is "primordial communism" something different than cooperation, that is, until one is elevated above the others?
See, one of the issues I have with the concept of libertarian private property is that one has the 'right' to do whatever one wants with the property one has title to. So, if I want to torch it during the height of the dry season, why wouldn't that be my right? It's my land, and what's on it is mine, no? If the stream crosses my land, would I not have the right to dam it completely or locate a livestock breeding facility along or astride its banks? What if I dam it to extract minerals and only allow contaminated water to leave the property? What if I own a hill or mountain and decide to strip mine it?
Secondly, if we're all just agreeing to accept a system where we hand the rights of property we currently control to someone else, 1) how do we insure such transfer of title isn't coercive? and 2) how do we settle a disagreement like when a river is listed as a property line and a 500 year flood comes along and the river changes course in a dramatic fashion? After generations of title transfer from parents to offspring, they claim the original river course while those on the adjoining lands say it's the present course. I'm pretty confident that more than one dispute amongst primordial communists started in just such a fashion, especially if the resulting change lead to the unwitting transfer of land needed to feed the community.
Next, what happens to nonaggression when I transfer ownership to someone who is NOT welcome in the community, like the livestock farmer or strip miner? Would it be nonaggressive to refuse the newcomer access to a resource like water or refuse them the right to travel across adjoining properties to get to and from their property?
Last, for now, what happens when one member of the community no longer wishes to be nonaggressive? Is it nonaggressive for the community to say, we are joining together in common defense and the best defense is to eliminate the one we feel is being aggressive?
Okay, while I see the allure of a system like you suggest, I'm just not sure we, as a species, are or ever will be evolved enough to live in peace and harmony either with or without private property, especially when the only thing protecting that ownership is everyone else's good will.