Comments on: Jesus was an anarcho-capitalist libertarian

By: russep3

russep3 — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 21:36:04 +0000

Just to let you know that James Redford updated his paper last month, it can be found at http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1337761, as can his new email address and website.

By: bellagerens

bellagerens — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:11:21 +0000

The key word is ‘thought,’ though, isn’t it? I’m not actively pursuing dual personalities, but I’m certainly happy to read anything – wrong or right – which shows evidence of rational thought, and then to select from it as praiseworthy those aspects that appeal to my own rational conclusions.

I’m not going to call them ‘independent’ rational conclusions, however, because they’re not. My beliefs (about anything) have not been formulated in the isolation of my own brain, but by the process I just described. And my rational conclusions are changing all the time, as I acquire knowledge of facts and perspectives of which I was not previously aware. Sometimes that results in not just dual personalities, but poly-personalities; however, in my search for a reconciliation of truth and reality, I am in the business of resolving whatever contradictions may present themselves. I am certainly not going to reject any compendium of thought that appears, in places, to challenge my current conclusions, even if, in the process, I have to splinter myself. In the end, the splinter heals, the sum total of my knowledge (if not my correctness) has grown, and the consolation for my scars is that whatever I believe is grounded in ‘rational thought’ rather than wilful blindness.

By: wh00ps

wh00ps — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:08:13 +0000

Thanks for the link!
I hadn’t fully read their exegesis (is that the right word? I stole it from Philip K. Dick) when I posted, but I’ve read most of it now. I’m convinced that Jesus was an anarchist (but then I already was), but not yet about the anarcho-capitalist thing. But then, I’m still not decided what I am, let alone what any Mithra-based possibly-historical-or-possibly-sky-fairy-or-maybe-a-mix-of-the-two persons may have been politically. It’s certainly a very interesting read though, and mainly plenty of argumentative points for certain “hairy lefties” of the christian persuasion, should you get into drunken political discussion with such at any time, as I frequently do.

By: Ed P

Ed P — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:54:34 +0000

Apart from the rather unavoidable fact that Christianity is based almost entirely on the Roman’s Mithras myths, the normally accepted tenets do include some less libertarian rules. The Jesus in the NT is quite keen on statements using “not” or “do not” – rather than the Libertarian’s “freedom from” attitude. Of course, as a trainee Libertarian, I have no objection to people believing whatever nonsense they find comforting (as long as I retain the freedom from having to listen to it). However I am bewildered by intelligent people, capable of rational thought, having faith in the irrational without developing dual personalities.