The public generally claims to deplore the use of force, yet it’s deeply committed to the programs of big government, which are based on force. This contradiction usually goes unnoticed, however, because few people acknowledge that the threat of force is fundamental to governments’ modus operandi.

James L. Payne is a Research Fellow at the Independent Institute and Director of Lytton Research and Analysis.
Government and PoliticsGovernment PowerLaw and LibertyPolitical Theory
Other Independent Review articles by James L. Payne
Summer 2016 Government Fails, Long Live Government! The Rise of “Failurism”
Fall 2014 The Real Case against Activist Global Warming Policy
Fall 2012 The Trend of War in the World: Evidence from the Arab-Israeli Dispute
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