Voluntaryism

This article is about the political position. For other uses, see Voluntarism.
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Voluntaryism (UK: /ˈvɒləntəriɪzəm/,[1] US: /-tɛr-/;[1] sometimes voluntarism[2] /ˈvɒləntərɪzəm/)[3] is used to describe the philosophy of Auberon Herbert, and later that of the authors and supporters of The Voluntaryist magazine, which supports a voluntary-funded state (i.e. "the Voluntary State"), meaning a lack of coercion and force in matters such as taxation.[4][5][6]

This is normally[opinion] completed through a strict adherence to pacifism, civil rights, and either arbitration or some other mutually-agreed-upon court system between individuals.[original research]

As a term, voluntaryism was coined in this usage by Auberon Herbert in the 19th century and gained renewed use since the late 20th century, especially within libertarianism in the United States. Voluntaryist principal beliefs stem from the idea of natural rights, equality, non-coercion, and non-aggression.[7] Despite his association with 20th century anarcho-capitalism Herbert rejected the idea of anarchy, hence its support for the state to enforce the law.[8][6]

  1. ^ a b "Voluntaryism" Archived 2015-03-04 at the Wayback Machine. Random House Unabridged Dictionary.
  2. ^ Not to be confused with political voluntarism as the political facet of philosophical voluntarism, holding that political authority emanates from a will.
  3. ^ "Voluntarism" Archived 2015-02-17 at the Wayback Machine. Random House Unabridged Dictionary.
  4. ^ Perry, Sarah (2020-02-03). "What is Voluntaryism?". Voluntaryism in Action. Archived from the original on 2022-06-29. Retrieved 2022-06-12.
  5. ^ "Auberon Herbert on compulsory taxation as the". oll.libertyfund.org. Retrieved 2024-03-03.
  6. ^ a b Mack, Erick (1978). "Voluntaryism: The Political Thought of Auberon Herbert". Journal of Libertarian Studies. 2 (4): 300–306.
  7. ^ "What Is Voluntaryism?". The Nassau Institute. 2018-08-29. Archived from the original on 2022-07-02. Retrieved 2022-06-12.
  8. ^ Herbert, Auberon (2015-09-20). "The Right and Wrong of Compulsion by the State | Auberon Herbert". fee.org. Retrieved 2024-03-03.