Stalin’s favorite secret policeman, Lavrenty Beria, is said to have said show me the man and I’ll show you the crime. By which was meant that any innocent man could be created a “criminal” – just like that – by finding or creating a “crime” and then convicting him of it. Ayn Rand had more to say about this in her writings, too.
I contemplate becoming such a “criminal.” By refusing to pay the insurance mafia that the government says I must hand over money to (as much as they say) in order to avoid becoming – you guessed it – a “criminal.” It being illegal to operate a vehicle on the government’s roads – there are no such things as “public” roads – unless one has paid the insurance mafia to “cover” hypothetical damages one hasn’t actually caused.
I’ve written about this latter business at length, so I will briefly make the obvious point that if it is just to force a man to pay for hypothetical damages he may cause with his vehicle then it is also just to force a man to pay for hypothetical damages his dog might cause. Also his gun, if he owns one. Anything he owns that could end up causing damage to some other person. There is no logical reason to object to such “coverage” mandates once any iteration of such “coverage” has been mandated.
So – do we accept being forced to “cover” against any hypothetical potential for damage – or just the ones that are arbitrarily decided to be the ones that must be “covered”? This being of a piece with the creating of “criminals” by arbitrarily deciding that some drugs are verboten to use, possess or sell but other drugs – some more dangerous (viz, alcohol) than the ones that can get you locked up for using/possessing/selling, such as the leaves of that dread plant, “marihuana,” are perfectly legal to use/possess/sell.
In other words, there is no hard deck limit as regards the imposition of “coverage” requirements; as with drugs, it is merely a matter of arbitrary decrees. This today. That tomorrow.
This sort of thing can only be thwarted by the assertion of the principle that a man who has not caused damages ought not to be compelled to pay for “damages” that might happen. Whether by driving his car or walking his dog or carrying a gun.
That will not happen, of course, until enough of us to achieve a critical mass of opposition decide to oppose this unjust business of forcing men (and women) to pay for harms they haven’t caused, this being a complete inversion of morality in the name of morality.
It is moral to expect – to require – that a man who causes damage compensate those he has damaged. But it is immoral to damage man who has not caused any – and that is exactly what forcing him to pay for “coverage” is since a man is damaged when he is forced to hand over money to another party contrary to his will and not as compensation for a debt of some kind, such as his having caused damage to some other person or their property.
This simple concept is apparently difficult for many people to comprehend. Including, unfortunately, many “conservatives,” because they think it irresponsible to not force people to buy insurance because . . . they might cause damages. Might as well be Leftists – for there is little that separates the two as regards their support for harassing and criminalizing people who’ve not harmed anyone and who just want to be left the Hell alone unless they actually do harm someone.
I weary of being harassed over and being forced to pay for “damages” I have not caused and – more to the point – am like many at the point of no longer being able to afford to pay for them because the cost of this “coverage” is becoming exorbitant and because the cost of everything else is also becoming exorbitant. Food. Utilities. Basic necessities. Things I need – like a new computer so I can work to earn the money I need to pay my bills. 
Absent making more money to compensate, a point comes when one must choose between paying to “cover” damages one hasn’t caused or paying for necessities, such as food and utilities.
A point comes, to put it in common language, when enough is enough.
The insurance mafia that “covers” the hypothetical damage I might cause by driving my truck has summarily more-than-doubled the cost of this “coverage” this year vs. two years ago. Any day now, I expect to get “offers” – in the mafia sense – for “renewals” (as if I had a choice) for the “coverage” I am expected to pay to be permitted to operate my motorcycles and my antique car on the government’s roads. I anticipate the cost of these “coverages” will also double – because the mafia is in the position of being able to make us “offers” we can’t (legally) refuse.
Imagine what a new car would cost if you were legally required to buy one. It’s actually surprising this hasn’t happened yet – and on similar pretexts. After all, a new car is “safer” than an older one because it has all the latest “safety” equipment. Implicit in this is that there is a greater risk you might cause damage by driving an older, less “safe” car and ought therefore to be required to buy a new one. Just the same as you are required to “cover” damages you might but have not actually caused.
Just wait.
Anyhow, I – like many others – am not just getting tired of paying for all of these damages I haven’t caused. I am no longer willing to pay for them. For essentially the same reason Bernie Goetz, for those who remember him, got tired of being accosted by thugs in the subway.
If the “offers” I get to “cover” my motorcycles and antique car are double what they were – or even more than they were – I think I will just cancel this “coverage” and thus achieve the real savings the insurance mafias love to tell you all about in their TeeVee commercials.
Of course, I will be violating the law if I operate my motorcycles or my antique car on the government’s roads. I no longer care about that, either. Because the only thing I care about is whether I’ve damaged anyone else or their property. If I have not, then leave me alone.
If that is not sufficient to be branded a “criminal,” then it is a title I will wear with pride.
. . .
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Off topic again, possible, but anyone else watching Orange Man and his No. 2 giving Zelenskyy the business this morning? Fucking hilarious.
Personally, I believe it was a brilliant political move by Trump, whether it was intentional or not is something else.
1. It gives the US the out they needed to stop subsidizing Ukraine, making Europe responsible for Europe, which they should be. The US has no business being involved. We should have taken a Swiss nuclear stance from the very beginning.
2. It keeps nukes off the table. The more Zelenskyy pushes the further the Trump Administration will align with Russian interests, or at least ignore, what Russia does in regards to Ukraine. There is no peace as long as the US and Russia are on differing sides.
3. It is likely World War III has been stopped. My guess is that Trump and Putin made a back door deal for Russia to claim the Donbas area, but to not further invade the country (at least while Trump is in office). Without the US’s troops, money, and weaponry which countries will now step up to come to Ukraine’s offense…Canada? United Kingdom? Germany? Let’s see what NATO does…my guess, probably not much.
Hey Raider,
I’m thinking your guess is probably correct, and once peace is restored, Zelenskyy must step down. NATO will do jack shit without the US involved.
It’s not, “Fucking hilarious” you all are being captivated by political theater. I’ll say the same thing as I said to those other guys:
I’m watching you guys say that, it seems like you’re in, ‘The Trump Fog’. It’s quite like watching the spaz/germaphobes freaking out about The Plandemic.
[Disclaimer: I’m not TDS.]
I’m reminded of back in the ’80’s watching WWEF or whatever they called fake wrestling on the TeeVee. My friends would get all wrapped up in it. You guys, & many others, are acting the same danged way.
While watching that T. vs. Z. event …You didn’t feel like you were watching Hulk Hogan smash a chair over… ?
Meanwhile, in the background, the MNRA vax, it’s working it’s way into your food chain. T is ok with that & culling tons of chickens & turkeys with toxic forever foam.
The Vax for you, is being distributed in the bees right now, it’s already in the pork, it’s already in some beef, they’re working on getting it into the chickens,… one way or another, team T will Vax you & you’re cheering them on?
https://www.unmc.edu/healthsecurity/transmission/2023/02/17/bird-flu-vaccination-policies-by-country/
So, I guess no one gives a shit about all that, perhaps we’ll watch Europe jump into the deep end, send troops & cry help… & America will just have to come to the rescue?
See also: ‘World War III Is Still On The Table: Europe Wants Boots On The Ground In Ukraine’.
…And, the Beat Goes On.
Hi Eric, back in 2004-5 my state(Florida) allowed citizens to self insure by setting aside funds in an account. Upon receiving proof the state would issue a card of sorts to the driver. I can’t remember the amount required if they could be the driver’s general funds or had to be sequestered in some way. I think the state ended the program but am not sure. See if Virginia allows this.
Jeff
Hi Jeff,
Yes, but this amounts to the same thing. One must place money in a trust for harms one has not caused. I say enough of this pre-crime business! Hold people accountable for what they do – not what you worry they might do. This argument that – absent forced insurance/bond – people would just welsh on debts incurred is neither here nor there because (a) it presumes they’ve caused harm or will cause it when they have not caused it and (b) it sets a dangerous – to liberty and common decency – precedent, as I tried to explain in the article.
[…] Guest Post by Eric Peters […]
Eric,
Another avenue: Obtain the Vehicle’s Manufacture’s Statement Of Origin (MSO)
Difficult, but has been done. It would mean full ownership – title,
not a certificate of title – meaning joint ownership with the state.
Libertarian, Michael Badnarik, Part 1 – at 38 minutes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCq-FK_DaA0&list=PLNljP2vJRd1Q_7h6oux3NGFvuOldwE4xR&index=1&t=222s
Eric – you need fleet insurance. My son has a policy sold by an individual which covers all his trucks, which he only drives one at a time. Most of his trucks stay parked at home or at the job site. Since you review cars, it would be easy for u to set it up, all your vehicles are part of your review business. One flat rate covers everything you drive. Since you have no accidents, it should be cheap.
https://wba-ins.com/business-insurance/fleet-insurance/
“State laws about insurance regulations for commercial vehicles differ from the rules about privately-owned vehicles.”
I would contact a fleet insurer, go to their office and set it up. Legally change your vehicles from private to business owned.
Hi Jack,
I appreciate the suggestion and the intention behind it but the last thing I need is “insurance.” It is insurance that is going to bankrupt middle and working class people, many of whom do not understand the nature of this wealth-extraction regime. Most people would be far better off without insurance in that they’d have money to pay for things. Insurance – and property taxes – are the road to serfdom.
I appreciate your passion for individual sovereignty and the principles of freedom. Ayn Rand’s philosophy resonates strongly with your stance, emphasizing that individual rights are the foundation of a just society. As she argued, “A free nation—a nation that recognizes, respects and protects the individual rights of its citizens—has a right to its territorial integrity, its social system and its form of government”.
Your frustration with mandatory insurance and other government impositions aligns with Rand’s view that the proper role of government should be limited to protecting individual rights to life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness. She believed that “no man has the right to initiate the use of physical force against others,” which extends to government coercion through mandates and regulations.
Rand’s emphasis on independence and integrity as core virtues speaks to your desire to stand up for your beliefs, even in the face of potential legal consequences. Your willingness to challenge what you see as unjust laws embodies her principle that individuals should be free to pursue their own interests.
While the path of civil disobedience you’re considering carries risks, it’s clear that you’re driven by a deep commitment to personal freedom and a rejection of arbitrary authority. As you navigate these challenges, remember that you’re not alone in valuing individual sovereignty and questioning the extent of government power in our lives.
Stay true to your principles and continue to assert your freedom. May your actions inspire others to do the same, fostering a community that values liberty and challenges unjust impositions. Your voice and ideas contribute to the ongoing dialogue about the proper balance between individual rights and collective responsibilities in a free society.
In this journey, remember that freedom is not just a right, but a state of mind. Embracing it fully means living with integrity, standing by your convictions, and inspiring others to do the same. Together, we can build a society where individual sovereignty is cherished and respected.
Thank you, Robert –
Civilization is a state of mind as much as form of human organization. It cannot exist without civilized men, who understand that they have an obligation to leave others alone (and free) and that it is the only way they can assert their own right to be left alone (and free).
Coercive collectivism is for apes, not men.
Totally off topic, but does anyone know if someone sells car batteries without the electrolyte installed?
This would be for shit-hits-the-fan situations or for if the battery died on the road somewhere, wherein the battery and electrolyte would be kept separately in a toolbox, so as to be preserved indefinitely. Though, I suppose in that case, a jumpbox would likely be necessary to start the vehicle and charge the battery anyway…
So far, my quick search indicates that they are not sold in such a condition.
Or am I being crazy?
I’m thinking for my Ranger, to have a bunch of common failure parts at the ready in a toolbox. Off-grid living and distant car-parts stores makes a person contemplate such things.
Forget the retail auto parts stores, the markup is obscene. RockAuto.com is your friend. Shipped to you via FedEx/UPS/USPS.
Hi BaDnOn –
You can sill get the old-style dry batteries with the acid in a separate bottle for motorcycles but I have not seen them for cars in awhile. I’ll see what I can find…
Thanks Eric!
If you do find such things, let us all know. I’m sure it would be of interest to the rest of your readership as well.
“ Poor, wretched, and stupid peoples, nations determined on your own misfortune and blind to your own good! You let yourselves be deprived before your own eyes of the best part of your revenues; your fields are plundered, your homes robbed, your family heirlooms taken away. You live in such a way that you cannot claim a single thing as your own; and it would seem that you consider yourselves lucky to be loaned your property, your families, and your very lives.” -Étienne de La Boétie
If auto insurance was tied to the individual driver and not the vehicle, it would be a much better and cheaper system. It makes absolutely no sense to have insurance tied to the vehicle.
That’s a decent point, Anarchyst, at least as far as liability is concerned.
Yes, I agree. I currently have five vehicles but only two drivers in my household. Yet I have to insure each vehicle individually.
That makes sense for fire and theft, but not for liability, obviously.
Hi X,
I circle back to: Hold me liable – responsible – for any harm I cause to someone else. But in the absence of harm caused, I (and others who do no harm) have a right to not be harmed. And being forced to hand over money to “cover” harms I might cause is to harm me. I am not cool with that and never will be. It is of a piece with the outrage a reasonable person feels when they are forced to pay money because they got a “speeding” ticket. They know they caused no harm and so do not feel guilty. Rather, they feel angry. And so do I.
I know when I drove my WRX, when I was first looking at full-coverage insurance for it (way back in 2006), as I was taking out a loan for it, the first quote was well over $300 dollars a month! And I have a clean record! I could not imagine what it woudl have been if I had a ticket on my record. But, it is because it was considered a “sports car”, that I was mandated to fork over more money for the insurance. Which I never used, because I never got into an accident with it. The car insurance company was able to knock the price down to $230 dollars a month, and was never so glad when I paid that vehicle off 2 years early, as I saved 2 years of full-coverage fees in the process. Had insurance been tied to the person, I would have paid a hell of a lot less for it. And now with EV’s floating around out there, we all have to pay for those behemoths, as well. It just never ends.
The satanworshippers in Blolympia, Washington “state” are in the process right now of trying to implement such “insurance” on firearms owners to the tune of $1MM “umbrella policy” for EVERY firearm owned. Which is just another deceptive way to create a firearms ownership database to assist the BATFE…..
The black flag is an idea whose time has come for many. Yet standing up to the IRS is the threshold most refuse to cross. Visited the accountant yesterday and I feel the huge check they’re expecting from me this year is unjustified AF. Especially in light of daily revelations regarding their colossal waste of money. Heck, they don’t even need income taxes at this point. One can easily make a well reasoned moral argument that GovCo should have none of our money until they get their financial house in order. The taxing going up on all levels still feels more like monetary mismanagement/inflation than something personal. I’m sure the mafia would say its jus bidness.
Still… I’m to old and soft for jail. I guess at some point the whole dying on your feet, versus living on your knees ting, will pencil out and make more sense for many. Make no mistake, living alone out on the periphery is a stopgap. Eventually, it will not be tolerated. We’ve been conditioned over the years just like in a game of whack-a-mole. A hard core, 1O% threshold of absolute hatred of all levels of GovCo is whats required for the beginnings of a successful revolution. Sometimes I feel like I’m the only one who hates these people. By now, the legitimacy of their very existence should be questioned by a large swath of the population, not just the few of us bitter clingers still howling at the moon.
‘standing up to the IRS is the threshold most refuse to cross’ — Norman Franklin
Directly confronting the IRS, or picking a fight with them, is insane. However, as the IRS lays off staff, their ability to analyze, question and audit individual returns diminishes.
It doesn’t mean peeps can do stupid stuff like claiming nonexistent dependents … or expenses that exceed the income of their business (the IRS hates business losses). Might as well just go on Facebook holding up an ‘arrest me’ placard.
But when it comes to some of the complex and obscure supplementary attachments to Form 1040 there are, let’s say, many, many different boxes to enter figures into … and no IRS resources to review those forms.
A third-party accountant or tax preparer has little incentive to take aggressive positions. Sometimes you just have to take their work product as a rough draft, and submit the final, artfully decorated version yourself.
I know you floated the Switerland Driver license in the other article but here in the US did you know insurance is not required in New Hampshire? I’d imagine someone could buy property there and have quite a few “roommates” or tenants registered in the state.
‘insurance is not required in New Hampshire’ — Henry G
Carrying a proof of insurance card wasn’t required when I lived in the South, although I was insured and did, by personal choice, carry a document from the insurance company.
Got stopped in N.J. with my out-of-state plate and was confronted with the standard demand, ‘license, registration, insurance card.’ The trooper was visibly skeptical about my non-standard, non-official insurance document … but chose to let it pass.
However, if I HAD been uninsured, or had no paperwork to prove it, I suspect it would have resulted in a ticket, if not towing. It raises an interesting question as to how uninsured N.H. residents are treated in the other 49 states, which do mandate insurance and evidence thereof. I would anticipate trouble, regardless of the legalities.
I think the other states require everyone registered In That State to have insurance. So if you are registered out of state in NH you might be fine? The vehicle is tied to the plate, it would be like saying you needed a NY plate and reg to drive into NY. You would have a type of coverage as you need to demonstrate financial responsibility in NH to waive insurance coverage and I would assume you can get a document of that to keep in the glovebox. I’m no lawyer though. I agree it’s hard to say; it could be like window tinting, where here in MO I can get decent tints but if I drive to NJ/MA wherever I’m clearly in violation. And all that’s before you get into random cops making their own judgments on the side of the road.
I have a few ideas I could share with you but it would have to be on a Face-To-Face basis – never on a Public Forum.
I recently received a letter from the state because the insurance ran out on a truck that was inherited from my late father. I ignored it. Thirty days later, received another. I called the state agency and asked first for Jimmy the Wap, then Fat Andy, Nikki Eyes, Frankie Two Times, and Johnny No Nose. The lady acted all confused. After explaining the insurance mafia angle to her she giggled a little. I was told that I would not be allowed to renew its registration if it remained uninsured. I said I might insure it then and she launched in to how driving it is illegal without insurance. I explained that extortion was also illegal and morally wrong to boot whereas my driving on roads I am taxed for in a vehicle I pay to register is harming no one. Of course it fell on deaf ears for her bread is buttered by the state since she is a mindless bureaucrat in their employ. I then told her to tell her supervisor to put some of that classic Dago music playing in the background to lend further ambiance to their racket. I rarely drive the truck and its mostly on very rural roads. I’m going to fake a copy of the paper the insurance company sends as proof just in case I get pulled over by a “hero”. The registration part will take some doing. Maybe I’ll insure it, register it, then cancel the insurance later but still have the card they send me. I can tell Guido the insurance capo the engine blew up and I’ll re-insure when it’s fixed. Since I pay my premiums for six months it will save me five months of mulcting. If I can pay it for a year then that scheme will really be good! I loathe Govcorp.
James ‘Two-Gun’ Hart was a law enforcer in Nebraska during Prohibition. Busted stills in the state.
Al ‘Scar Face’ Capone was his brother. Not from another mother.
Al Capone was the first American capitalist to ‘earn’ 100,000,000 dollars in one year.
Booze was berry, berry good to Al. Back in 1928 when it paid big time.
Buy some Florida real estate.
Only the USS Kidd can fly the Jolly Roger.
Who do you think you are, Eddie Teach?
Shiver me timbers!
Eric,
While of course I am in complete agreement with you on this subject, and have contemplated it myself, I can not figure out how one might accomplish the feat of loosing one’s self from the protection racket. I mean, in most staes, such as mine, if your Mafia protection lapses, Guido and the boys are required to notify the other Mafia (The elected crime-family) who will promptly send you a letter informing you that your “registration” is cancelled, and or start charging you a per-day fee (Even higher than what you would pay for the Mafia-mulcting- as if they were “covering” you, even though they provide no such coverage).
I also fear being pulled over (It happens to everyone sooner or later -see Stalin quote…) in which case in my state, if you don’t produce the requisite “papers” your car will be impounded, and it will cost you more to spring your car from car-jail (including “storage”, fees, hefty towing charge, and ticket for no insurance and invalid registration) than what a year’s Mafia-mulcting would cost. Much more.
Not to mention, that as a homeowner, if I am ever involved in an accident, even if it’s 100% the other guy’s fault, there will likely be a lawsuit, and a lawyer to defend you (and you will need one, unless you want to chance losing your stuff) will cost THOUSANDS. Not to mention that if there is not 100% proof of whose fault the accident was, and your fate is left up to some unjust black-robed employee of the state who thinks he’s God, you face a good chance of not having things go your way.
So I am having trouble seeing how one might actually accomplish driving without insurance, under the present tyranny, -unless of course one is a resident of “the ‘hood” who drives a disposable car and has nothing to lose, and is used to being caged regularly. Those are typically the people who drive without insurance (and there are tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of them, and it doesn’t seem to have any effect on the tyranny, but just incites the state to tighten the screws down on the rest of us even more.
Much as I’d like to, I’m just not seeing how to accomplish this without it likely costing me even more than the few hundred dollars a year I pay for “coverage”. Sad thing is, that this “coverage” seems to now be more about being protected from the state rather than being protected from our own actions or those of other drivers.
I see it as yet another cost of tyranny, just like property taxes and driver’s licenses. I don’t see any practical way around it. It’s disgusting, as I’ve paid more for “insurance” for potential damages that I’ve never caused than for any other expense over the decades (And I get “cheap” insurance, as I have a spotless record. I know people who are paying four or five grand per year to cover one vehicle! -and yet there is no rebellion…).
Well said. Insurance is a garlic necklace.
“When you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing – When you see that money is flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors – When you see that men get richer by graft and by pull than by work, and your laws don’t protect you against them, but protect them against you – When you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice – You may know that your society is doomed.” ― Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged
My brother had an old car in San Fran about 20 years ago. He racked up many parking fines (I think the total was about $3,000 or so). They finally towed and impounded it, intending to sell it at auction unless the tickets were all paid. They allowed him get his personal belongings out of it. When he went to the impound yard, he brought a window marker and wrote “Blown Motor” on the windshield. He later bought the car back at auction for the opening bid of $200 free and clear of the parking fines, as nobody else bid on it because of the “Blown Motor.”
Brilliant!
Legendary!
> as a homeowner, if I am ever involved in an accident, even if it’s 100% the other guy’s fault, there will likely be a lawsuit,
*You* should not own anything.
Any significant assets, such as RE, automobiles, etc., should be owned by a trust.
Check with a qualified asset protection attorney in your state.
The trust is not liable for your actions, so its assets cannot be sold to pay *your* debts.
Interesting. I may have to look into that!
The inherent immorality of car insurance. How can I be liable for damages caused by a vehicle I’m not driving? Why must I have liability coverage on each and every vehicle I own, instead of for myself? It could easily be adjusted to the highest risk vehicle I own. It makes no sense, other than as a cash cow for insurance companies.
RE: “It makes no sense, other than as a cash cow for insurance companies”.
Whole lotta others benefit from that scam:
Politicians, judges, lawyers, leo’s, video camera companies & installers, that gravy train is long.
Hi Eric,
Just a thought:
Maybe print on fancy parchment paper with burned edges “Damage Bond” “I promise to reimburse any party that I cause damage while operating this vehicle.” In small print: “I reserve the right to reserve my rights under the constitution.” Make it look like an official Insurance Bond.
https://www.amazon.com/Custom-printed-handmade-parchment-scroll/dp/B07CN6BT6Y
It won’t get you out of Dutch, and the simple Simon AGW’s will accuse you of being some sort of “Sovern Citizen” but maybe you can make a point with these idiots. If you get caught, I guess you might have to pay a fine and get proof of insurance for a while, but then you can cancel. Likely cheaper than the forced insurance mafia.
RE: “but maybe you can make a point with these idiots”.
Doubtful.
RE: “If you get caught, I guess you might have to pay a fine and get proof of insurance for a while”
Isn’t there a missing step there where they impound the car & tow it away?
Nope. They’ll just put crampons over the jackboots & laugh even harder while watching you flail.
Rule #1: The system always wins.
Better to opt out of the system, as far as such a thing is possible anyway, than try to fight it. If you run afoul of the rules & get caught, try to negotiate the lightest penalty you can get, accept your punishment, and move on. You’re only hurting yourself by dragging it out, and no one cares.
If you want to make a point start out by having megabucks, get a team of actual attorneys, and take it to SCOTUS (which is a bit tricky in and of itself).
If you can, try to avoid felonies and jail. A misdemeanor and a fine won’t (usually) hurt you all that much in the long run.
Obviously if it’s a murder case or something you’re going to catch a felony and you’re going to go to jail, unless you’ve got a really strong case for being innocent. At that point you’re basically negotiating whether or not you can get parole eligibility, & (depending on the state) maybe negotiating whether it’s a death penalty case or not.
Insurance as I understand it was originally a rich man’s game. Shippers and merchants knew that a calculated fraction of their ships and cargos would never make it to their destination and back, so trade associations would pool resources such that lost ships and cargos were reimbursed.
Normal people had little and understood that it was better to forgive a loss or avenge a deliberate injury than to waste scarce resources on “insurance”.
Are we so different now? If you drive a new/expensive car, isnt it incumbent on only you to insure against its loss?
But people lost their minds, especially hysterical people, when cars came on scene 150 years ago. They were so crazy fast the democrats/communists/hysterics passed laws mandating that they be preceded by a pedestrian with a red flag, and limited to the speed of a walking horse.
And they all focused on the damage done and lives lost to this newfangled technology, conveniently forgetting the rampant disease from horse exhaust piling up in the streets, and all the broken necks and backs from horse riding.
It’s very simple, this isn’t a democracy, you don’t get a vote on my behavior until I harm a real person. And private driving is a right, guaranteed by the first and second amendments implicitly.
But so long as too many fools believe themselves free because they can watch streaming porn, this tyranny will continue.
‘Shippers and merchants knew that a calculated fraction of their ships and cargos would never make it to their destination and back, so trade associations would pool resources such that lost ships and cargos were reimbursed.’ — Ernie
This actually goes back to Roman times, when unexpected storms (there were no barometers) regularly would sink a percentage of cross-Mediterranean ship traffic each year. It survives today:
‘General average is a maritime law principle that requires all parties involved in a voyage to share losses when part of the ship or cargo is sacrificed to save the rest. It’s based on the idea that all parties benefit from a successful voyage, so they should all share some of the risks.’
Auto insurance can be viewed as a form of general average for the 6 million auto accidents that predictably occur each year — though not an ideal one.
Sure, Jim. But just like the general average works when applied to a costly capital asset like a merchant ship with a valuable cargo, how the hell and why would you apply it to a canoe, a raft, or a rowboat?
Folks like to lament the 6 million or so accidents and the 40000 or so fatalities, when neither is statistically significant in a nation of 330,000,000 people and tens of billions of road miles.
If you have a valuable/expensive car, insure it yourself for your benefit. For the vast majority there is zero benefit. And if you’re requiring some such as a provision of using public roads, why isnt government selling that insurance? If you’ve traveled in Mexico, they use such a system. When you drive across the border, you pay once for Mexican road insurance.
That’s interesting, Erie, regarding Mexico. Never knew that.
My long-standing idea was the creation of loan companies that would come to the “rescue” if you were guilty of causing a wreck. Oh, I’m sure they’d be a bit predatory, but they’d allow you to quickly pay off the court-ordered punitive/restorative expenses, and THEN you’d make a monthly payment, just like you must do today. But, in this case, you only do so if you’d caused damage, not because you drive.
>40000 or so fatalities, when neither is statistically significant
It is statistically significant if you, or someone close to you, is one of the fatalities.
>If you have a valuable/expensive car, insure it yourself
What about other people’s valuable expensive cars?
If you hit one of them, and the accident is “deemed” to be your fault, you are on the hook for the damages.
I don’t know where you live, but try this as an exercise:
1. Go to the fanciest neighborhood you can think of.
Park your car and observe the vehicles. Write down the make, model and year of each one.
2. Do the same for the poorest neighborhood you can think of.
3. Look up the value of each car you found.
4. Assume a moderately bad case, such as a three car pileup.
5. Calculate the difference in cost between totaling two representative cars from the expensive neighborhood versus two from the poor neighborhood.
Unless you can strike a deal with your insurance carrier, stating that your PD liability will lapse if you enter stipulated “high net worth” ZIP Codes (unlikely), your carrier will base its rates on some kind of average.
Thus, as the price of cars *in* *general* goes up, you can expect your PD liability rates to increase correspondingly. To borrow numbers from one of Eric’s recent posts, as more drivers are bullied or wheedled into driving $60,000 EVs with fartsonic sound effects, you can expect your PD liability rate to be more than when the same drivers were herding $30,000 V8s.
And there is nothing you can do about it, except “go naked.” But if you choose that option, be sure to cover your ass. See my post above RE: asset protection.
I, personally, have never “gone naked” w.r.t. auto insurance (too risky, for me), but I have done so w.r.t. professional liability for my business activity. because the cost was prohibitive. Yes, Lloyds of London would write a policy, but I would have been working nearly for free. I am not Santa Claus. See my post above RE: asset protection.
No PI attorney is going to sue someone who has no personal assets. You cannot squeeze blood from a turnip. IANAL, therefore what I am suggesting is not legal advice. It is in fact hearsay, based on what my attorney advised. I suggest you do your own research.
Wow, that “Death Wish” clip was a remarkable look into a different, vastly free-er country. The subway was clean, without graffiti or human waste. The bad guys were swarthy whites. And Bronson was able to mete out simple Justice without Big Brother’s cameras interfering.
Black flag time, indeed. We’re way way past Claire Wolfe’s awkward stage.
Irwin Schiff died in prison standing on his principles. I’d sure hate to see that happen to Eric.
Hi Mike,
I have given this a great deal of thought – and continue to think about it. I am re-reading Gulag Archipelago and find Solzhnitysn’s counsel to be sage. The sooner we stop kowtowing to all of this, the sooner we stop abetting it – and the sooner it stops.
One option is just to drop out. To go “Galt.” Buy a piece of land in a remote area where neighbors are few and far between. Quietly park a nice Class C there, out of sight. You might have to pay some property tax but that can be minimized. Earn little to no taxable income. They can’t get much tax from you, then.
The mafia can chew on rotten fish heads.
Good luck Eric!
Not sure how it works in VA but here in Taxachusetts the DMV, inspection stations and the insurance mafia are all interconnected with the Hive mind. One time I was a few weeks late in getting my saaaaafety inspection and got a nastygram from the insurance mafia telling me to get it done or my registration would be cancelled. Hope you can stay under the radar.
Good luck to you Mike in Boston!!!
Hopefully you can move ASAP to a free state soon, where you can have more options available, or at least acquire one as a big out location.
Perhaps someone knows of a database for the free-est/most constitutionally based states ranking with the least fees/mulcting of citizens???
It’s be nice to know where paradise is…
One option is just to drop out. To go “Galt.”
A much better option.
I’m in the process of doing just that -dropping out. Ironically, the few shackles of tyranny I find it necessary to retain are a driver’s license and….car insurance and registration, because one has to still drive to town occasionally, and “traffic stops” are ny FARRrr their biggest net for the average non-criminal. Chances are, the only times you will have to deal with the porkers is when you drive. If it weren’t for that, many of us could go our whole lives without ever having to interact with a ‘roided-up dumbass.
The truly scary thing is that just as these driving laws and the DMV interconnectedness of all things has been built into such a big net, so too will many other facets of become thanks to $500-billion about to be expended on government-sponsored AI.
I’m dropping out and moving to the sticks, but I fear it is already too late and that there is nowhere in this country to truly escape not only the surveillance and tyranny that we already have, but even more so, what is shortly coming. Perhaps one day someplace abroad may present itself as a true escape, and when and if it does I will move again, but for now, best case scenario, all we can have is limited relative liberty.
Related:
‘Housing: The Foundations of the Middle Class Are Crumbling’
“As the urban winners cash in their equity and move to desirable towns, they quickly bid up housing to the point local residents can no longer afford to buy a home in their hometown. […]
Bottom line: with the loss of predictability, we’ve also lost any sense of future financial security.” …
https://charleshughsmith.substack.com/p/housing-the-foundations-of-the-middle
Title of a Guardian article linked above:
‘‘I feel trapped’: how home ownership has become a nightmare for many Americans’
So, every which way, but loose?
“Buy a piece of land in a remote area where neighbors are few and far between. Quietly park a nice Class C there, out of sight. You might have to pay some property tax but that can be minimized.”
This was my plan, and so far it’s going well. Now, if this “property tax” business could be eliminated… Perhaps if only those who PAID property tax could vote on its continued existence. But as we know, “democracy” is about a pack of thieves being given a right to ransack you, referring to their greater numbers as a prerogative.
A good book and a decent read that espouses just that of honest citizens successfully defending themselves against unjust and unjustified government behavior is “Unintended Consequences” by author John Ross.
It is a long read, the hardcover encompassing close to 900 pages but it has a good story line and weaves historical, political and legal doctrines and concepts into a relatively entertaining story.
One can get a good historical, political and legal education from this book as well as being a “how-to” book with real solutions.
Original hard copies of this book are difficult to find and are going for hundreds of dollars.
I understand that a softcover version is now available. It is also available for free as a pdf file.
I heartily recommend this book and consider it a mandatory read for all freedom-loving people.
When this book first came out, sellers of this book were routinely harassed by FBI, DEA and ATF types.
THAT sort of tells you something about the potential volatility of the contents of this book.
Once I started reading it I could not put down this book and read the book in one evening. I’m a fast but comprehensive reader…
I encourage all to obtain and read it…
Thanks for the tip, Anarchyst – I will definitely get a copy of Ross’ book!
“One option is just to drop out. To go “Galt.” Buy a piece of land in a remote area where neighbors are few and far between. Quietly park a nice Class C there, out of sight. You might have to pay some property tax but that can be minimized. Earn little to no taxable income. They can’t get much tax from you, then.”
America WAS like that for a LONG time. There was always someplace you could check out to and just be left alone. Not any more (cf. Weaver, Randy).
The government can and will come after you waaaaay out in the middle of Bumfuck, USA. There are tactical cops everywhere now. Everything can be seen by drone or satellite or Google Earth. Nothing is “out of sight” the way it used to be, no matter how far off the beaten path.
And have you checked out land prices? Particularly out West? Sure you can find cheap land — barren, dry, no utilities, no water. Nothing you can actually LIVE on. Housing? A singlewide trailer is now $100k — $200k in a lot of western states.
Merle Haggard sang about this dream fifty years ago, but even he went back to workin’:
“Sometimes I think about leaving, do a little bummin’ around
I want to throw my bills out the window, catch a train to another town
But I’ll go back working
I gotta buy my kids a brand new pair of shoes”
Ted Kaczynski puled it off for a while though, LOL.
Yes Eric, don’t do it. Who’s going to to give us a platform to vent and read your unbiased car reviews! Instead see how far you can get by talking to the local representatives and insurance types.
“It is moral to expect – to require – that a man who causes damage compensate those he has damaged”
There’s the rub, because how do you collect from a person that damages your property. We live in an immoral world for the most part. There are in this world of nature, predators and prey and fortunately the prey outnumber the predators by a great number. It would be nice if the world were populated by moral, responsible people but we know that’s not true. My 2001 mini was stolen from in front of my property and the police found it totaled about 4 miles away. I had spent quite a few hours driving around he neighborhood looking. It was only worth about 2 thousand but I spent time and money to keep it running. Some SOB’s high on liquor and maybe drugs crashed it. There were empty beer can cans and an empty liquor bottle inside.
Who pays? The insurance did give me 2 thousand but the car was worth a lot more to me.
Hi Euro –
There are courts for that. Or ought to be. This is how it worked, once. Didn’t pay your debts? Debtor’s prison for you. Or an indenture. How about a chain gang? Seriously. I see nothing wrong with such consequences for the irresponsible/deadbeats. I do not consider that the “solution” is to treat everyone else as a presumptively irresponsible deadbeat as that is tyrannical. Yes, I understand people “worry” about being left holding the bag. But unless I actually do cause someone to “hold the bag,” I have a right to be left in peace. More finely, I have a right to not be forced to hand over money because people “worry” about harms I have not caused but might.
Freedom is scary, get over it.
If you’re uncomfortable with the possibility of not being able to collect from a person that damages your property, you can get uninsured motorist coverage. It’s cheap.
Freedom also includes the right to collect debts owed to you, as another person who causes loss or harm to you or your property is your debtor, and thus you have a legitimate claim over him and his, which is one of the few times that in principle, a trespass against another’s person or property is warranted.
It is the LACK of freedom which prevents such justice, as under the current tyranny, our actions to collect a debt which is not voluntarily paid would be considered “assault and battery” or “theft”, and so they would make US the criminal for trying to affect justice, as under this tyranny, only their black-robed priests and badged thugs are allowed to enforce such things.
Freedom most certainly does include the right to collect debts owed to you. While you may enjoy a right to seek to recover damages you’ve suffered from a tortfeasor, etc., this right has nothing to do with freedom. Pursuing recovery for harms done to you sure, but actually collecting is a different thing entirely, which is not guaranteed. If one is not comfortable with this risk, there are certain measures that can be taken like uninsured motorist coverage, requiring security (a cash deposit, bond, etc.) before transacting business with others, etc.
The antithesis of freedom is being required to purchaser “coverage” from a private company under the threat of a gun and badge for harms that you have not committed.
Regarding trying to affect justice as you have discussed, what if there’s a dispute as to whether that individual is legally responsible for the damages or debt? Not saying the court monopoly is the only answer, as entities such as Ebay and Amazon have workable internal dispute resolution mechanisms, but self help sounds kind of scary to me for both side. The court system, as flawed as it is, tends to keep the peace among the parties.
Europeasant,
Well, if the drunken perpetrators only had insurance, you would’ve been reimbursed in full!
Yeah, car theft was not a great example of why insurance coverage should be mandated.
Keep in mind that government parasites do things to increase their wealth and power.
Every time that money changes hands, like from yours to the insurance mafia, government takes a percentage called income tax.
Government parasites live well because they force as many such transactions as possible.
Money sitting in ‘investments’ makes no profit for government until it changes hands, so government encourages profligate spending to fill their own pockets and to make it appear that they ‘create jobs.’
They can’t track cash transactions without voluntary accounting by the businessmen, who are the ‘marks’ of the government parasitic conmen.
Buying with cash anonymously also cuts into their ability to manipulate the buyers’ ‘needs’ via customized advertising for all the additional products that you don’t really need relating to the purchases you made.
Privacy is paramount.
Cripple the government. Take away their borrowing power. Take away their power to tax everything. Take away their power to force people to consume what they don’t want or need.
D.C. NIFO
It’s the only way to be sure.
‘Murder … suicide … insanity’ — from the Reefer Madness trailer
‘Gene Hackman and his wife were found dead in Santa Fe. Sheriff’s deputies found the bodies of Mr. Hackman; his wife, Betsy Arakawa, 64; and a dog, according to the statement, which said that foul play was not suspected.‘ — NYT
Yep. Sounds totally legit. Buncha folks just up and dying, including the dog.
By the way, those were some pathetic looking ditch-weed buds in Reefer Madness. Last ones I helped harvest were foot-long, three-inch diameter bottle brushes. Now where is that mad floozie peeling her blouse off?
Hi Jim,
In re Hackman. Has to be a suicide deal if it’s not murder. He was 95, so – ok – it makes sense that he just died. But his wife was only 63. And the dog?
Re Gene Hackman, perhaps a gas leak or CO leak?
The safety net was used on ships and high construction projects to help prevent death from falls. The Golden Gate Bridge wasn’t the first use of them but their installation was highly promoted. Safety nets were cheap insurance that saved lives.
I imagine at some point some contractor failed to install safety nets properly, leading to lawsuits by the victims. Then the safety net took on more formal design, probably requiring engineering and certification, raising the cost of installation.
Insurance is a virtual safety net. It was designed to prevent bankruptcy in case of an accident. But over time instead of being a financial hedge, it became a mandate. And minimum standards applied to everyone no matter what their situation.
Working from a high location without a net is dangerous, yet people do it every day. Perhaps that’s foolhardy, but there are plenty of old men who survived to say otherwise.
>there are plenty of old men who survived
And there are old men who would not be here if not for safety nets.
I was once acquainted with a steel erector who told me he “went in the hole” (i.e. fell into the safety net) twice during construction of a high rise in downtown Los Angeles. Absent safety nets, I would never have made his acquaintance.
Neighbor recently fell off his roof
Wasn’t using a safety harness. Now has a fractured pelvis and gets to spend at least the next three months in a wheel chair.
There is a reason you don’t see many old roofers.
And there are lots of cases where having insurance saved homes, businesses and retirement funds. But what should be a tool that can prevent disaster (or lesson it to a degree that is acceptable to the user/buyer), it becomes a requirement.
Imagine if sidewalks or hiking trails required safety nets? Because someone might fall off the curb.
>Imagine if sidewalks or hiking trails required safety nets
Give them time, RK.
Karens never sleep.
There is a beach in San Clemente, CA which formerly required scrambling over boulders to get to the beach. Now, there is a set of wooden stairs. But, you still have to cross the RR tracks to get to the stairs. Surprised it is still open… Parking used to be free. Now there are parking meters.
Have you got a ‘Go Fund Me’ account set up where we can send bail money
Hi Ken,
Nope! But the reader support (via the “donate” tab on site) works just as well! I expect many more than just me are going to just say no. Or – rather – enough. They can’t jail us all, can they?
RE: “They can’t jail us all, can they?”
Why sure they can, just look at the war against some drugs. It’s all a money maker, for some.
They impound your car, sell it off & pocket the money, then, when you don’t pay the fine they lock you up & ‘someone’ makes money off that until you’re released & then rinse & repeat.
…Until you get the likes of a Raider Girl, or a Ken doing what you’re contemplating, the population will just watch.
…What are you going to name your donkey?
Hey,,, I was funnin… Eric knows the risk,,,,
But, is, ‘Going Gault’ the same as, ‘Going Amish’? Er, Amish style, maybe?
He’s a Pontiac man, he could get a pony to pull a buggy instead of a donkey or a big horse.
1 H.P. & a big orange triangle on the back.
…Is that a song?
“I can’t drive, over-5”. …Be free of the Insurance Mafia, though. And, watch the police & the taxman pass him by.
…Do they tax ponies? …Pony insurance?
“It is moral to expect – to require – that a man who causes damage compensate those he has damaged.”
Very true, Eric. However, when someone does cause damage to another the “fines” are paid to GovCo, not the actual victim. Remember, if someone steals your stuff, gets caught and put on trial it is The State of [your state here] vs. the accused. It’s not, The State on behalf of the victim.
Slavery and indentured servitude are legal at the Fed level and in most states. But, it’s to be used as punishment for crimes. In other word, the perp pays their victim directly. Other than that Seinfeld episode where some guy was made to be his butler, when have you heard this mentioned?