I've been thinking about this before and I've been told that in a nutshell the "Free State Project" is nothing more than a project of moving 20K people to NH whom have libertarian or similar views. Fair enough I suppose, but in practice there are a few problems, and I invite you to correct me if you think I'm perceiving wrongly.
First, the fact that the project may have originally had its purpose limited to the above and the fact that some people would still regurgitate that theory, doesn't do anything to address how FSP is being perceived by most people in reality, if that perception differs from the original purpose.
And I feel that it does. It seems to me that most people see it as some sort of a quasi political organization. But today, I don't really need to go any further than to point to the recent undertaking by Russel Kanning, the Free State
Party, as a way to completely cement the perception of the Free State
Project as political in nature, due to the rather obvious terminological link.
And here comes the rub. I am an apolitical voluntaryist and I don't believe in political means of achieving liberty. I think they're self-contradictory and may even do more damage than good. They help to legitimize the very system we want to see fade away, even when such political action is done in the name of doing the opposite.
Finally, even the original statement of intent has a political bent to it:
Statement of Intent
I hereby state my solemn intent to move to the state of New Hampshire. Once there, I will exert the fullest practical effort toward the creation of a society in which the maximum role of civil government is the protection of life, liberty, and property.
Yet my belief is that there should be no such thing as the role of government, clearly referring to the concept of government as we know it: coercive monopoly. Therefore by signing that statement of intent I in fact
lied.
The case is made. What I should do then is to withdraw my membership in the FSP, even while continuing my intention to move to NH and encouraging others to move as well. Thought crossed my mind to start a Voluntaryist Lands Project once I move in.
What do you think? Am I right to reach these conclusions?