Who is a Statist?

One of the most common epithets that libertarians will use to decry those who advocate for this or that government policy is that of a "Statist." This term carries a certain meaning within libertarian circles, and is typically used to point out those who specifically call for the violations of individual rights, justified by the mere fact that "government" is the body carrying them out.To the Statist, government is seen as a separate entity from the rest of the population, a body imbued with some sort of magical powers to carry out the "will of the people", or the "manifest destiny" of a nation.  This attitude towards government can lead to people accepting all sorts of tyrannical government policies and regimes.  The people expect that this entity - "the State" - should have rights which extend far beyond the natural rights of individuals that most generally abide by in their day to day lives.Whereas most individuals would agree that it is wrong to point a gun at one's neighbor and demand their money, the Statist can justify the government doing so in the name of "the greater good." Statists will use this same justification to advocate for all sorts of government policies that he will support being imposed upon his neighbor - the War on Drugs, medical licensing, patent laws, etc. - so long as he is not the one doing the enforcing. In the most extreme circumstances, this sort of "Statist" mentality leads to tyrannical regimes which can get away with genocide, as in the case of the Holocaust.The type of Statist which supports tyrannical government and the individual rights violations that go with it are rightly chastised by many libertarians and principled advocates of individual liberty. But there is another type of Statist which many libertarians  and anarchists fail to recognize.In order to do so, they would have to look in the mirror.Many libertarians and anarchists fall into the same trap regarding the "State" as their more tyrannical Statist counterparts. They too view "the State" not as a human organization, created and maintained by individuals, but as a separate, ethereal entity - an eternal evil that must be destroyed at all costs.Much like the "Statists" they regularly malign, they embrace Max Weber's view of government or "the State", which he defined as a:

"human community that (successfully) claims the monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force within a given territory"

For advocates of individual liberty, the only legitimate use of physical violence is in self-defense - whether that is defending one's own body against physical attack, or one's own property. An organization which declares a monopoly over others in this area is certainly something that should be rejected, and libertarians and anarchists are correct to decry organizations which attempt to do so.But why even accept this notion in the first place? Even modern governments do not "successfully" claim monopolies on the legitimate use of force in the sense that this definition implies. Most modern governments even recognize the right to self-defense to various extents, and often use "human rights violations" as a pretense to invade the "sovereign" regions of other countries. The notion of a "monopoly on violence" is a fantasy, and accepts the Statist concept that "the State" does indeed have magical powers to rule over others.Anarchists who define themselves around being "against the State" are essentially accepting statist methodology in forging their beliefs. They are embracing the "State as God" notion that so many Statists use to justify tyrannical government. Why should principled advocates of individual liberty operate within the intellectual framework of those whose ideology they most vehemently oppose?Contrast that with philosopher John Locke's view of government, as laid out in his Second Treatise of Government:

Men being, as has been said, by nature all free, equal, and independent, no one can be put out of this estate and subjected to the political power of another without his own consent, which is done by agreeing with other men, to join and unite in a community for their comfortable, safe and peaceable living, one amongst another, in a secure enjoyment of their properties, and a greater security against any that are not of it. This any number of men may do, because it injures not the freedom of the rest; they are left, as they were, in the liberty of the state of Nature. When any number of men have so consented to make one community or government, they are thereby presently incorporated, and make one body politic, wherein the majority have the right to act and conclude the rest.

Locke emphasizes that a proper government must, quite literally, be formed through consent of the governed - actual consent, not some sort of fallacious "social contract" concept which Statists typically push forth.Every form of government, whether it is an outwardly tyrannical regime such as those of Nazi Germany or modern day North Korea, or whether it is simply a collection of individuals who voluntarily band together in the Lockean sense, is comprised of individual human beings. These organizations generally carry out its functions in conjunction with the beliefs of those individuals.The government, or "State", is not separate from the individuals of a nation, and to treat is as such only serves to advance the ideas of tyranny, not the ideas of liberty. To give legitimacy to the Weberian concept of "the State" only helps to drive home the idea that "the State" is a completely separate, uniformly evil Demon. In effect, this embraces the same view of the Statists who actively advocate for flagrant violations of natural law.In order to advance liberty, we must strive to imbue individuals with the proper conceptions of natural law and natural rights.In other words, don't be a Statist!Receive access to ALL of our EXCLUSIVE bonus audio content – including “Conspiracy Corner”, “Degenerate Gamblers” and the “League of Liberty Podcast” by joining the Lions of Liberty Pride and supporting us on Patreon!