On Wed, Jun 5, 2013 at 10:47 AM, Craig Sanders <cas@taz.net.au> wrote:

you haven't read up on your dogma - most anarcho-capitalists praise
charity as virtuous and philanthropic because it is a voluntary act
by the wealthy.

Just because I think an individual has the right to give part/all of his/her property/wealth away doesn't mean I think such an act creates a better world.

and, yes, there is some truth in that - welfare can create dependancy,
as can charity. the alternative, letting people starve or suffer
untreated illness or homelessness is worse.

While I am in favour of a safety net (and I distinguish between a safety net and welfare state)... that is such a simplification. The alternative to charity is not illness and death, the alternative to charity is social and economical development and growth!

it's also a good argument for legalising and regulating the supply
of heroin and other drugs of dependancy

Again, I am totally in favour of legalising all drugs. Drugs use should at best be viewed at as a medical issue, and there are many economical, social, criminal and right-based arguments in favour of legalising drugs.

In fact, I don't know of any sane person who in 2013 thinks that the war on drugs has worked.

And I object to drug users being called "junkies", but perhaps that shows your self-professed middle-class bias?

But what does this have to do with aid? What does a safety net/welfare state have to do with aid? Surely we can recognise these as separate and debate them as such, no?

but anarcho-capitalists don't give a fuck about sustainability - future
profits and income are irrelevant because it might be someone else who
gets them. they want to plunder and loot whatever they can now and to
hell with the consequences.

As an anarcho-capitalist (wow I love this term!) I do care about sustainability because it does directly affect profits.

Overfishing is a massive issue, and it shows one of the biggest flaws in our current system of government regulation. I'm not saying I have a silver bullet answer to the problem of overfishing, but there have been some successful small-scale pilots in Latin America where giving long term (99 years I believe) rights to fishing to the local fishermen and making them stakeholders in the ecosystem has given very promising results.

But again, how does this relate to aid?

PS: I hope I haven't distorted your black and white socialism/anarcho-capitalism view of the world too much!