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_A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear_, Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling
I recently finished A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear (Amazon link), which describes events in and around Grafton, New Hampshire during Grafton's "Free Town" years, when a group of idealogues moved to the area in an attempt to build a utopia based on liberty and individual sovereignty.
Actually, "group" implies a level of organization and cohesion that overstates the reality, but we go with the words we have.
The book itself is written entertainingly and reads quickly, and paints a believable picture of the Grafton area, but it never really pulls its various strands together into a cohesive statement. This is perhaps an unfair criticism--since it appears it was impossible for the libertarians to pull their own strands together into a cohesive plan for the town beyond "don't tell me what to do" and "don't tax me"--but either way, I was left at the end of the book wondering, "OK, so what?"
By far the meatiest parts of the book are the ones that talk about the bears that live around Grafton and their frequent interactions (sometimes terrifying ones) with the human residents. By contrast, the libertarians portrayed in the book get short shrift on their motivations and the consequences of their philosophies.
Spoiler: the bear problem in Grafton predates the "Free Town" period, and the net effect of actions by libertarians on the bear problem is not clear. So there's a little bit of "not what was promised on the box" going on.
This book will not convince anybody of anything they did not already believe before they read it.
Still, it IS an entertaining read, especially if you are already on the "libertarians are not the sharpest tacks in the shed" side of the issue, and I do recommend it. It might be a better borrow than a buy, if your local library has a copy.
Actually, "group" implies a level of organization and cohesion that overstates the reality, but we go with the words we have.
The book itself is written entertainingly and reads quickly, and paints a believable picture of the Grafton area, but it never really pulls its various strands together into a cohesive statement. This is perhaps an unfair criticism--since it appears it was impossible for the libertarians to pull their own strands together into a cohesive plan for the town beyond "don't tell me what to do" and "don't tax me"--but either way, I was left at the end of the book wondering, "OK, so what?"
By far the meatiest parts of the book are the ones that talk about the bears that live around Grafton and their frequent interactions (sometimes terrifying ones) with the human residents. By contrast, the libertarians portrayed in the book get short shrift on their motivations and the consequences of their philosophies.
Spoiler: the bear problem in Grafton predates the "Free Town" period, and the net effect of actions by libertarians on the bear problem is not clear. So there's a little bit of "not what was promised on the box" going on.
This book will not convince anybody of anything they did not already believe before they read it.
Still, it IS an entertaining read, especially if you are already on the "libertarians are not the sharpest tacks in the shed" side of the issue, and I do recommend it. It might be a better borrow than a buy, if your local library has a copy.