I’m directing this post toward other libertarians out there.  I think an important question needs to be answered.  I’m sure you’re all aware of the pool party incident in McKinney, Texas a few days ago.  The pool party took place in a sub section called Craig Ranch. Craig Ranch is an HOA.

I’ve often heard libertarians/ancaps point to HOAs as a possible way a stateless society could work, or at least use HOAs as some evidence that we can and do voluntarily agree to rules.  As I understand the situation, one of the members of the HOA hosted an unauthorized party at the pool.  Several outsiders came and were turned away.  First security tried to remove the party-goers from the property but they were unable to, so residents called the police.

The unwelcome guests refused to leave so the police used force.  Let me be clear, I think it takes a special person to throw down an unarmed, teenage girl in a bikini.  It is possible that this police officer was on a power trip and didn’t like being questioned.  It certainly does not make him tough or courageous to pull a gun on teens in bathing suits.  But, don’t libertarians say private property can be protected with force?

If the owners of the pool did not want 70-100 teens in their pool (I can’t imagine why they wouldn’t?), can’t they assign the defense of the property to someone else?  This wasn’t a drug raid, this wasn’t extortion for running a stop sign, it was removing unwanted people from private property.

My unanswered question is; how would this be handled in a stateless society?  If instead of the local cops, it was the homeowners with guns, would libertarians object?  I suspect they would, it is certainly excessive to get a harmless person off your property with a gun, but I bet many libertarians would say the property owner had the right to do it.

Of course I wasn’t there, so I definitely don’t have all the details, and there are always several sides to a story but if the property owners thought the force was acceptable, is it crazy to think this might have happened in a stateless society?  I think the party probably would have never taken place to begin with, unless they had proper permission.  I assume if people grew up respecting property, they wouldn’t assume they can just use it like we do in today’s world, but who knows?

As for libertarians who say that since the police have a monopoly on force, we could fire the aggressors in a free society, this is true. In this case, the cop apologized, said his emotions got the best of him, and he resigned.  I realize this isn’t the same as putting a security force out of business, but take a step back, try to empathize, and look at the full story.  I’m more appalled over extortion for rolling a stop sign than I am for the McKinney, Texas incident.