Is Taxation a Necessary Evil? w/ Dr. James Harrigan

As libertarians, we all agree: taxation is theft. But in this episode,  Dr. James Harrigan joins Josh to wrestle with a question that hits close to home for many of us—what if some level of taxation is the "necessary evil" that prevents worse evils in society?

They dive into what, if anything, is the legitimate role of government in a free society: What services, if any, do free people truly need from the state to protect private property, individual liberty, and the equal human value of every citizen? And what moral dilemmas arise when there's no government "stop-gap" at all. Does pure voluntarism leave the vulnerable exposed? What uncomfortable realities would we face in a purely voluntary system, and would we be okay with those realities?  

Obviously, this isn't about defending the state—it's an honest, sometimes uncomfortable look at the internal conflicts we libertarians face when principle meets real-world messiness. 

 

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Check out James on the Words & Numbers podcast:

 

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