Libertarian Paradise?

[Morgan Brykein]

It's often joked that Somalia is a "libertarian paradise," when it really isn't, since it's being taken over by Islamists and all. What foreign country do you think would be the closest to a "libertarian paradise," either by law or just de facto.

 

[heavenlyboy34]

what makes you think Somalia is "being taken over by Islamists"? Evidence? Even the CIA factbook disagrees with you https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/so.html

 

[Morgan Brykein]

what makes you think Somalia is "being taken over by Islamists"? Evidence? Even the CIA factbook disagrees with you https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/so.html

I was looking at this map.

 

[UnReconstructed]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong

Hong Kong is one of the world's leading international financial centres, with a major capitalist service economy characterised by low taxation, free trade and minimum government intervention under the ethos of positive non-interventionism.

 

[BuddyRey]

Jarvis Island and Howland Island are probably the closest places on Earth to what I would call libertarian paradise...mostly because they're completely uninhabited.

 

[Morgan Brykein]

Jarvis Island and Howland Island are probably the closest places on Earth to what I would call libertarian paradise...mostly because they're completely uninhabited.

Jarvis Island has restricted entry, but we could always move to Howland Island and establish our own libertarian paradise!

 

[swirling_vortex]

Personally, I reject the term "paradise" because that implies some sort of grand utopian vision. Free markets aren't without some pain (such as technological progression) and scarcity of a commonly used resource may create problems while people look for ways for using another one.

With that said, I agree that Hong Kong had at one point close to a free market system. It's not like that way anymore now though (they recently passed a minimum wage law). The problem today is that most people in 1st world nations accept that government somehow is necessary for us to live that way, so in terms of a modern society, there aren't any examples. That's not to say all is lost, two authors that wrote for the Future of Freedom Foundation went to Costa Rica and discovered that many people have a distrust of government.

http://www.fff.org/freedom/0798a.asp
http://www.fff.org/freedom/fd0506e.asp (in two parts)

I've heard Switzerland, New Zealand, and Chile thrown around as well, but they aren't that much better off.

 

[ibaghdadi]

It's often joked that Somalia is a "libertarian paradise," when it really isn't, since it's being taken over by Islamists and all. What foreign country do you think would be the closest to a "libertarian paradise," either by law or just de facto.

Actually we weren't talking about Somalia, more accurately we were talking about Somaliland. Google both terms. Somaliland is in the north and has declared independence, meanwhile all the fighting is happening in the south, sometimes the extreme south (tropical jungles between southern Somalia and Kenya).

 

[Morgan Brykein]

Actually we weren't talking about Somalia, more accurately we were talking about Somaliland. Google both terms. Somaliland is in the north and has declared independence, meanwhile all the fighting is happening in the south, sometimes the extreme south (tropical jungles between southern Somalia and Kenya).

I was referencing how liberals make cracks about Somalia being a libertarian paradise.

 

[Gaius1981]

You need to define what type of libertarian you are, first. If you're a businessman who's focused on laissez-faire capitalism, and could care less about culture and social values, go with Hong Kong (or Monte Carlo if you're extremely rich). If you're a paleolibertarian Christian, you'd probably still be best off in one of the southern states of the U.S., such as Alabama. If you dislike the warfare state more than anything else, you might consider Costa Rica, where there's no military and the libertarians are doing exceedingly well in the polls. If you have a very balanced view, consider Estonia or Switzerland. If you're a social libertarian first and foremost, consider Holland.

The U.S. remains the #1 battleground between individualism and collectivism, though... there's more people who understand and support libertarian ideas there, than anywhere else in the world. Move out of the U.S., and you might end up missing the libertarian communities, and the spirit of resistance, very much.

 

[ibaghdadi]

The U.S. remains the #1 battleground between individualism and collectivism, though... there's more people who understand and support libertarian ideas there, than anywhere else in the world. Move out of the U.S., and you might end up missing the libertarian communities, and the spirit of resistance, very much.

It is one of the paradoxes of our times that the greatest threat to liberty and the greatest hope for liberty are both within the USA.

 

[Indy Vidual]

New Zealand had some success cutting their government, anyone here familiar with the details?