The Individual's Kingdom

By Chris Rossini

​If there is one word that accurately describes our physical world and our individual human lives, it is "uniqueness." Every grain of sand, every snowflake, every animal and every human being is exquisitely unique. One-of-a-kind. No copies.

We are each individual sovereigns of our own personal kingdoms. 

The order of business is the same every waking moment that we are here. As CEO's of our individual kingdoms, we are tasked with choosing our own thoughts, what to dwell upon, our beliefs, valuations, choices, and actions.

No one else can do any of these things for us. They can certainly suggest what we should think, choose, or do, but their power stops there. We individually must decide whether to listen to them or not.

There is no "We" in this kingdom, outside of a lifeless abstraction.

Life does not manifest Itself as 'people.' Life does not manifest Itself as a 'group.' Life does not manifest Itself as "We."

Rather, Life manifests Itself as this particular individual ... that particular individual ... another particular individual... 

7+ billion times and counting ... Life manifests Itself as 7+ billion individual and unique "I's."

The great Ludwig von Mises said it perfectly: "Only the individual thinks. Only the individual reasons. Only the individual acts."

If one is tasked with having to sum this extraordinary gift up into one word, that word would be --- LIBERTY.

Liberty is a part of human nature. America's Founders described it as a self-evident truth. Liberty just is, and like all of nature, human nature cannot be changed. It is.

There can never be a case of "We think," without the consent of each individual that makes up the abstract "We." 

Each individual must consent. If he or she consents, then he or she must individually experience and feel the consequences of whatever has been consented to.

Since every individual has the Liberty to consent, it necessarily means that he or she can just as easily withhold consent.

There is no living and breathing "We." There is no "General Will," or "Public Mind," or "Public Health," etc...etc...

These abstract word salads are mixed together by authoritarian individuals who seek to use force and who wish to rule over other individuals.

Authoritarians are individuals who have an immoral and warped "foreign policy."

Every individual's personal kingdom must have a "foreign policy." One of the critical choices that each one us must make is in how we will treat other individuals.

Will it be the authoritarian and tyrannical way -- coercion, force and violence against others?

Or will it be the moral and just way -- voluntarism, contract, peace and consent?

"Foreign policy" is the big one. It makes or breaks the entire individual kingdom.

Since each individual has the natural right to his own life, liberty, property and pursuit of happiness, it necessarily means that individual liberty comes with built-in restraints.

The restraint is other individuals and their natural right to their own life, liberty, property and pursuit of happiness.

Our individual liberty extends to the liberty of others. It stops right there and goes no further.

The moment we choose to harm another individual's person or property, we are choosing to act as a tyrant. We have chosen a tyrannical "foreign policy." This is why peace cannot be separated from individual liberty. They are one.

We are currently living in a time where many individuals have chosen "foreign policies" of tyranny.

Violence, force, theft, deception, cheating, destruction and war...

Individuals who choose this way of life are putting their personal kingdoms into a very high risk situation. They are choosing to throw away their extraordinary gift. The tyrannical way of life will ultimate destroy their individual and personal kingdoms.

Fortunately, the good life is only a choice away. Dealing with others through consent and voluntarism is just a choice, a simple choice.

Let us each, individually, strive to make that choice on a daily basis. Let us each take care of our own individual kingdoms and peacefully coexist with the individual kingdoms of others.