The Mindcrime Liberty Show with Dobson and Patton

Ep. 117: Are landlords criminals? Is the state a landlord?

The Mindcrime Liberty Show discusses whether those who collect rents from properties are criminals? If this is the case, wouldn’t the state also be a landlord par excellence considering that it collects property taxes and tells the occupants what it can and can’t do? Why do so many progressives, social democrats and others hate landlords but seemingly love the property tax collecting and the money printing managerial state? Are land, housing and rent more expensive because of central banks giving out easy money? Do environmental regulations, which so many people on the Left love, and licensing requirements also make housing more expensive as well?

 

Ep. 116: Can the government pull off conspiracies?

The Mindcrime Liberty Show discusses whether the state is really too incompetent to pull off a “conspiracy.” Libertarians routinely accuse the government of being too incompetent but this argument is incorrect. The problem with the State is that it isn’t incentivized to provide said services for the common good. On the contrary the so-called open and closed conspiracies, which it is accused of, ARE in the interest of certain sectors of the State. Since most sophisticated political theorists including Hoppe, Chomsky, Burnham, Rothbard, Preston and Carson, understand that the State isn’t some grassroots democracy, the question of conspiracies becomes a question of when, not if. The mainstream of course accuses other governments such as Putin, Xi or Saddam (as well as historically the moustache man in the Reichstag) but wouldn’t accuse their own government of it. What makes the American or British state different? The “they” could be relatively innocuous persons merely acting in their own class or career interest. Many of the “they,” just as Socrates thought in the Meno dialogue, could think it's for the good of all or their tribe. There needs to be war in Indochina or the Middle East, so one stages a false flag in order to drum up support. Satanists need not apply (although who knows). Why couldn’t “they” assassinate JFK, stage a false flag, fake a moon landing for PR or hide trafficking? The anti-conspiracy line seems to suggest that no organization can make a plan and keep it secret - Volkswagen did! The Manhattan project was a secret from Truman. This way of understanding human behavior is much more in line with Mises Human action. Humans, acting within organizations, can and do make plans, and can and do act. Some plans are of course a priori impossible but false flags and assassinations are far from impossible.

Ep. 115: Does mental illness exist? W/Rik Storey

The Mindcrime Liberty Show is joined by Rik Storey to discuss, does mental illness exists? Is it merely a tool which ruling powers use to isolate and medicate those who don’t fit in? Is PTSD a rational response to witnessing horrors? What exactly is “normal” or “healthy” behavior especially in the current age? Are the formal institutions of society in any position to say that?  Is mental illness merely a way to get around moral culpability by labelling any unwanted action as something akin to diarrhea or a toothache? What causes mental illness if it does indeed exist? Is mental illness incompatible with a robust understanding of Christianity? If Christianity is indeed true, then would such a society have the category of mental illness?

Ep 114: Why don’t central banks print even more money???

The Mindcrime Liberty Show discusses, why don’t government central banks print more money? Printing money is extremely useful for the state because it is seemingly “unseen” tax. This “tax”, paid for by inflation and Cantillon effects, also has the effect of weakening those who don’t get the money as quickly and those who are on fixed incomes. What is the limit of state banks from going hyper MMT considering how it allows them to live effectively "rent free"? Does the fear of a radical alteration in your exchange rate between other central banks keep them honest? How much coordination between central banks is there? Does the fear of upsetting the golden goose regulate the state? How real is this fear and what would be its limits?

 

Ep. 113: Are the British Royal family any different than the Kardashians?

The Mindcrime Liberty Show discusses the British Royal Family by asking, are they any different than the Kardashians? Are the royals merely attention seeking celebrities with a brand that sells branded merch to adoring fans? Did Queen Elizabeth become a kind of “girl boss” celebrity or is she the last standing member of the ancien regime? Are parliamentary politicians merely celebrities too? If this “celebrityfication” did happen, when did it happen and is this a good development? Does the monarchy still have virtues? What is the role of the royal family in Britain and the wider English world going forward?

Ep 112: What is the purpose of fathers?

The Mindcrime liberty show discusses, what is the purpose of fathers? Are fathers merely sperm donors? Are fathers merely breadwinning money cows to be milked by children and wives? Are fathers a cultural killer app, to use the Niall Ferguson term? Do societies with involved fathers do better than those which don’t? Is there a tension between the idea of an involved father and a successful one? Being successful at anything seems to require a significant number of hours. As Musk jokes, nothing worthwhile was ever accomplished on 40 hours a week, let alone “part-time.” Most fathers in the nuclear family model in the industrial world work outside the home and so are functionally away from their families for much of the time. In the past the number of hours worked was even higher. Even though in death bed confessions people say they want to work less, their revealed preference and necessity seem to dictate otherwise. Why is that and can this tension be resolved? Finally, should the clergy or priestly class be single without any entangling ties of the family?

Ep 111: What causes the decline of civilization? W/Rik Storey.

The Mindcrime Liberty Show discusses, what causes the decline of the civilisations? Does improved material standard of living lead to selfishness? Do late stage civilisations value artistic endeavours above ancient military heroes? Do the populations then neglect public institutions which are needed to maintain social order? Does the increased political participation of women, historically and presently, aid the decline? Does specialisation lead to the feminisation of men? How can we arrest the decline?

Ep 110:Are nuclear weapons a win for liberty and decentralization?

The Mindcrime Liberty Show discusses whether nuclear weapons are a win for liberty and decentralization. Since nuclear weapons exist and one can’t put the genie back in the bottle, what should libertarians, anarchists and the Right think about them? Are they an a priori offensive weapon? Are nuclear weapons a way for small states (or a hypothetical libertarian society) to project force against large states to prevent aggression? Should Libya, and for that matter Ukraine, kept its nuclear weapons? Are North Korea and Israel pursuing a rational strategy?  Do Nukes protect Russia from regime change? Do nukes put skin in the game for elites of a given society to seek diplomacy instead of escalation? Is mutually assured nuclear annihilation an improvement over the previous eras’ weapons systems? Do nuclear weapons explain the so-called long peace, if indeed there is a long peace, better than other theories such as the monstrosity known as the Kantian democratic peace theory?

Ep. 109: Is voting a waste of time?

The Mindcrime Liberty Show discusses whether voting is a waste of one’s scarce time? Is voting cooperating with evil? Is voting for the lesser of two evils or a third party a useful strategy? Is Walter Block right? What are the dangers of third parties? 
Aren’t things like the “socialist” or “libertarian” party merely a theoretical contradiction? If they do win, what will the existing bureaucracy, military industrial complex and deep state “allow” them to do? If John F. Kennedy allegedly told De Gaul that he didn’t know who was in charge of this government back then, what would a Jill Stein, Ron Paul or Jo Jorgensen be “allowed” to do? Are “outsider” or “disrupter” politicians, both left and right, useful? Is voting for Thomas Massie or Ron Paul a good thing to do? If the deep state and bureaucracy is really in charge the accusation of formally cooperating with evil becomes less salient considering that no elected official actually decides anything so voting for the official is no cooperation at all. 
Are the formal voting mechanisms of the so-called liberal democracies like the US, Canada, France and UK much different than say Chinese, Russian or North Korean elections which the former like to accuse the latter of being compromised? Can a case still be made to head out to the polls especially if the opportunity cost is quite low? What are the benefits and costs of dropping out? Is the discrediting by low turnout a useful strategy? Are there dangers in identifying with politicians and political parties?

Ep 107: How do people come to believe what they believe?

The Mindcrime Liberty Show is joined by Terminal Philosophy to discuss belief formation. Why and how do people come to believe what they believe? Is it reason, genetics, social environment or simply opportunistic pragmatism? Or more malevolently is it propaganda and indoctrination combined with cowardice and weakness of will that are the real causes of beliefs in most people? Does ignorance, living in a bubble and lack of self reflection play a role? Is there any difference between so called elites and everyday people? Who has a more robust usage of reason and a greater degree of self-reflection? Are many of today's western media and political elites mostly blind ignoramuses? Do most people generally only reflect on means, rather than ends?