Professional Documents
Culture Documents
PART ONE
Definitions of Freedom
Anthem by Ayn Rand (Penguin Books, NY; 1992 - first published in 1938):
"There is nothing to take a man's freedom away from him, save other men. To be free, a man
must be free of his brothers. That is freedom. That and nothing else."
"Full freedom is the absence of restraints, other than natural ones, on an individual's actions."
"The degree of a man's freedom decreases as the restraints on his actions, beyond those
imposed by nature, increase in number or extent."
"Although the influences reducing a man's freedom can vary in form, the source of any and all
such influences can only be the actions of other men."
For a New Liberty: The Libertarian Manifesto by Murray N. Rothbard (Collier Books, NY;
1978 - first published 1973):
"Freedom is a condition in which a person's ownership rights in his own body and his legitimate
material property are not invaded, are not aggressed against."
The Discovery of Freedom: Man's Struggle Against Authority by Rose Wilder Lane (Arno Press
& The New York Times, NY; 1972 - first published in 1943):
The Ego & Its Own: The Case of the Individual Against Authority by Max Stirner (Rebel Press,
London; 1982 - first published in German in 1845 as Der Einzige und sein Eigentum):
"It is not recognized in the full amplitude of the word that all freedom is essentially self-
liberation - that I can have only so much freedom as I procure for myself by my owness."
How I Found Freedom in an Unfree World by Harry Browne (Avon Books, NY; 1973):
On the other hand, if as a freedom-activist, you adopt the Stirnerite definition, then all your
efforts to increase freedom are aimed at improving yourself and how you handle your affairs.
One of the principles advocated by Harry Browne is that you don't organize to change or
oppose the government because they are likely to nail you. According to Browne, one of the
greatest freedoms is freedom from the urge of wanting to control others.
Depending on which definition you adopt, your behavior will be fundamentally and radically
different. Does the Randian definition lead to essentially self-sacrificial, altruistic behavior?
Are Randians expected to sacrifice money, time, and effort to support organizations that will
change the political system? Does the Stirnerite definition lead to "selfish" (in the commonly
used sense) behavior that is ultimately self-defeating? Are Stirnerites expected to focus only on
self-liberation, while in the long-term the political system may overwhelm them anyway?
The second assumption of the Self-Liberation strategy is that the power of terrocrats is tenuous
(fragile, of little substance). Their power rests on lies and naive victims believing those lies.
Terrocrat power depends on support from victims. (Rand's "sanction of the victim.") Gandhi
demonstrated the tenuous power of terrocrats when he defeated the British Empire and drove
the British out of India without firing a shot. The fall of the Berlin Wall was a further
demonstration. The East German armed might, supported by several hundred thousand Russian
troops could not keep the Berlin Wall standing, once a critical mass of victims withdrew their
sanction. Another demonstration was the collapse of the Soviet Empire. Again, when a critical
mass of victims withdrew their sanction, the Soviet Empire disappeared overnight.
Free people cooperate on the basis of self-ownership, individual sovereignty, and voluntary
exchange. We advocate that individuals and groups acquire and implement freedom technology
to increase their personal freedom and power, and to shift their assets and economic activities
into the free market to whatever degree is appropriate for each individual. We further advocate
that sovereign individuals create alternative voluntary institutions (particularly regarding
currencies and financial services).
The third assumption of the Self-Liberation strategy is that when a critical mass of people,
assets, and economic activities have shifted into the free market, coercive political systems will
collapse like the British in India, the Berlin Wall, and the Soviet Empire.
PART TWO
In order to produce the result I want, I need to define what I want and focus on that. I need to
calculate what actions might produce the desired result. I need to test these actions and observe
what result they produce. If they don't produce the desired result, I need to choose a different
result and/or I must try different actions. I may also want to examine my mind for programs
that prevent me from taking the necessary actions. If I find such programs, I could replace them
with programs that enable me to produce the result I want.
The most important result I want is greater freedom for myself, my friends, and all humanity. I
believe that applying the material which our organization provides is the action to produce this
result. By beginning to acquire and apply freedom technology, you can start enjoying the
benefits of greater freedom immediately.