Nathans message

Dear Secret Service:

I am writing to inform you that in the near future, I will kill the President of the United States of America.

My primary motivation for doing so is that he is the leader of the largest and most dangerous criminal organization in the world - namely, the United States Government. Among the many unlawful activities it engages in is a nationwide protection racket, in which it extorts money from non-consenting citizens, in exchange for "protection" from aggression. If a citizen refuses to pay, then the government itself commits aggression against him, either by stealing his property; kidnapping and falsely imprisoning him; or killing him if he attempts to use weapons to resist.

The criminal organization justifies these shakedowns partly by saying that the majority of voters have indicated their support for the leaders implementing the extortion; and therefore, bearing the imprimatur of the democratic process, such theft is legitimate. This might be true, if all personal property (such as land and incomes) were held in common, with each member of the electorate being a joint owner having an equal right to decide how it shall be disposed of. But property is not held in common, unless the owner has consented to such an arrangement. If I make an agreement with my employer for a certain wage, and fulfill my obligations, then I have a right to the full amount, not just whatever is left after some criminal gang takes its cut. And if I own land, then I have a right to enjoy it without paying rent to the government in the form of "property taxes," nonpayment of which will result in repossession. Stealing is a criminal act, whether it has the support of one person or a million people.

The government's thefts are not only immoral, but unnecessary. In the absence of taxpayer-funded police, courts, and defense agencies, citizens and businesses would hire private police, arbitrators, and private defense agencies to provide protection and dispute resolution. These firms, being unburdened by the red tape and dysfunctional bureaucracies that accompany government, would be more efficient and effective than government agencies. Abolishing the government's compulsory monopoly will allow a competitive marketplace for these services to emerge, resulting in lower prices and better quality. The same goes for other vital services, such as transportation, education, and health care. (If you want a good picture of what government-run universal health care will be like, by the way, check out the quality of the hospitals run by the Dept. of Veterans Affairs.)

Government regulation must also be ended, since it constitutes an infringement on our freedom. Laws supposedly intended to protect workers, such as the minimum wage, actually hurt the poor by pricing them out of the labor market. The government red tape required to operate a business also creates barriers to entrepreneurialism. Regulation of various professions (including mandatory licensures) reduces the number of available professionals, causing the price of important services (such as doctors, lawyers, accountants, etc.) to rise. Immigration restrictions are violating the rights of employers to invite whomever they want onto their property; and in doing so, are hampering the ability of U.S. firms to compete against low-wage countries such as China in the global economy. Regulation accounts for much of the reason why we are entering a recession, and why millions of Americans are unemployed or underemployed. Everyone should be allowed to negotiate whatever contracts they want for purchase or sale of goods and services, without government interference.

Perhaps most disturbing, the government is also steadily chipping away at the right of citizens to bear arms; the whole point of which is to enable them to fight back against an oppressive government. Once the people are disarmed, they will be able to offer no further meaningful resistance. Thus, this is the now-or-never tipping point at which it becomes essential to take up arms against the government.

People often say that it would be better to try to change the system through the political process, rather than resorting to assassination. Unfortunately, the prospects for peaceful reform are dim. The main reason is that most of the intellectuals, who might otherwise form a nucleus of dissent, have been bought off or indoctrinated. The lure of a lucrative, stable job in academia, government or government contracting draws many intellectuals to these fields. In those roles, they are hardly in a position to go around questioning the merits of government's existence. That would be biting the hand that feeds them. Instead, they use their posts in the state bureaucracy (including the public education system) to help indoctrinate new generations of young people into the statist ideology. There are even government positions, such as the Drug Czar, that are specifically tasked with advocating the government's current policies at taxpayer expense (see U.S. Code Title 21, Section 1703(b)(12), which requires the Drug Czar to "take such actions as necessary to oppose any attempt to legalize" drugs). As one cannabis reform activist pointed out, legalizers are essentially paying to oppose themselves.

The statists also have the benefit of political donations from interest groups seeking to profit from feeding at the public trough. The Medicare drug benefit, farm subsidies, etc. are creating whole new classes of citizens who see themselves as financially dependent on the government's continued largesse. It is almost impossible for even a well-funded libertarian movement to compete effectively against those who have taxpayer funds at their disposal to indoctrinate and/or buy off the electorate.

While it is immoral to kill someone over a small infraction, such as shoplifting a piece of gum, it is morally acceptable to kill someone who is committing armed robbery. As noted, the government is engaging in such robbery as we speak; therefore, the lives of the individuals responsible are forfeit. It makes sense to target those at the top of the organization, so as to decapitate it and thereby cause as much disruption to its activities as possible.

Accordingly, it would seem that the best solution is to use assassinations to overthrow the United States Government by force, so that an anarcho-capitalist system can take its place. I hope that this essay has convinced you of this merits of this idea. If not, I encourage you to read Murray Rothbard's For a New Liberty: The Libertarian Manifesto; Man, Economy, and State with Power and Market; and The Ethics of Liberty, which lay out the philosophical, legal, economic and historical arguments for anarcho-capitalism in more detail; and also John Ross' novel, Unintended Consequences, which describes how such an assassination campaign might take place.

The Secret Service has many agents who have physical access to the President and awareness of his schedule and travel routes, and therefore are in a good position to participate in an assassination. If you would like to collaborate on this, please let me know. I am pretty good with precision rifles, and have been practicing hitting prairie dogs at 1,000 yards in varying wind conditions. The President's head is larger than the average rodent, so with prior knowledge of his route, I should be able to find a position that will enable me to take him out with one clean shot. However, sniping is always easier when you have a spotter. Therefore, if you are able to take off a day from work to help me, it will be much appreciated. Don't worry, I can provide a spotter scope and ghillie suit, if you don't have one.

Alternately, if after reading Rothbard's books, you're still not convinced this is a worthy cause, you may feel the need to take action against me. I acknowledge the possibility of this eventuality coming to pass; and if it does, I invite you to come down to my house where we can stage a reenactment of Ruby Ridge, with you playing the role of U.S. Deputy Marshal William Degan. It will be interesting to see how many of you die before you figure out where I'm shooting from. I have some pretty good night vision gear, so we can even give this a try at 3 AM if your busy schedule makes that the most convenient time. I'll be waiting for you.

Nathan Larson