You may have noticed that I’ve re-named this newsletter to the “Basic Liberty Letter.” I’ve also just acquired the domain name basicliberty.com. As of now, it’s just a place where people can go to subscribe and share the newsletter via Twitter, Facebook etc. (please share!), but I hope to one day have regular blog posts and links to other liberty-minded people.

Non-Aggression

As many of you know, I run a small business servicing swimming pools. Late last week, a woman found my company online and called me in desperation: “Our pool has been cloudy for weeks. I have been adding more than enough chemicals. I’ve owned a pool all my life and I just can’t figure it out. We’re having company next week and I really need this problem solved.” Upon her insistence, I talked her through several reasons why her pool might be cloudy based on the information she gave me. She scheduled a service visit for me to take a look. I drove there today, and she showed me the pool and filtration equipment. I took one look, and showed her a single valve that she had out of place, which was preventing the water from being filtered properly. The problem was solved in about 10 seconds, requiring no tools, and her pool will be crystal clear within a few hours.

When we are looking upon problems, our mind races through all the most complicated explanations and solutions. Rarely does it ever occur to us that the answer is simple. Rarely does it ever occur to us that a single “turn of the valve” is all that is needed to redirect energy to real solutions. In the realm of politics, the solutions that government gives us (i.e. laws) have become incredibly complex and convoluted. If it seems difficult to reduce a law or policy to a basic principle, there is good reason: there usually is no principle. There are only complicated contradictions. For example, “the U.S. must use force against the people of Libya to prevent its leader from using force against its people.” Or “we must steal money from citizens to pay for a police force which protects citizens against theft.”

When I look at our current political situation, I see one single thing that I believe will allow most of these complex problems to be solved: the non-aggression principle. It’s one simple, basic principle that can be applied to pretty much any problem; do not initiate the use of force against another. Do not use guns to solve problems. Do not steal property for any reason, no matter how noble you feel your cause is. It doesn’t matter if you’re an individual, or if you are the government.

This is why I chose the name “Basic Liberty.” It’s because I feel like people who are interested in liberty and freedom complicate things too much. Liberty is not found in a complex set of laws, or long-winded justifications. Liberty is a basic principle, based on the axiom of non aggression. Liberty does not solve problems, but rather allows them to be solved using non-violent, peaceful means. Tyranny, on the other hand, actively prevents problems from being solved, by initiating the use of violence.

Sometimes, all it takes is one turn of the valve, and everything just seems to flow.

Thanks and peace,

Nick Foley
The Basic Liberty Letter
http://www.basicliberty.com
http://www.youtube.com/bookofnick
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