A libertarian asks, ‘Can law enforcement and the Free State Project coexist?’
One of the fundamental differences that separates libertarian Republicans from party regulars (and Democrats) is their attitude toward law enforcement. This distinction was recently highlighted in an exchange on the Free State Project discussion forum, in which a potential Free Stater asked if her husband, who is pursuing a career in law enforcement, could ever be a “respected member” of the group.
“Can law enforcement and FSP coexist?” she wondered. “[W]e side mostly as libertarians, however the disdain for law enforcement is what has always been difficult for us, because it often feels like a slap in the face of his career choice.”
FSP founder Jason Sorens was diplomatic. “There are some liberty folks in police work in the area – not a lot, but definitely several,” he replied. “Some of them find that their jobs are difficult given the ethical dilemmas they face, especially in larger cities where the enforcement priorities often include vices, and where you’re taking orders rather than exercising your own judgment.”
“There are plenty of small NH towns with basically one police officer (like Grafton), and there you’d be able to exercise enforcement discretion,” Sorens continued. “In those places, I’d rather have a liberty cop than an antiliberty one.”
Others were less circumspect.
“The problem with police is that their job requires them to violate the non-aggression principle on a daily basis,” answered one writer. “Libertarian activists are generally less concerned about a person’s intentions, and more concerned about a person’s actions. You might fancy yourself a good freedom loving person. But if you’re kidnapping peaceful people and throwing them into cages, you’re a bad person, period.”
“I don’t believe they are compatible,” another responded. “While much of what you’ve written sounds great, that ‘occupation’ is compensated with stolen and extorted money. Even if your husband did the moral thing and disobeyed every statute, order, law, code, etc. he’d still be living on protection money. There is nothing free about that.”