No intrinsic moral legitimacy
The State possesses no moral authority merely by existing or by exercising power
THE THEORY OF MINIMAL TOLERANCE
When may coercion
be tolerated?
A theory of power and its limits
Power is tolerated Not legitimized Only under exceptional conditions
The burden of proof belongs to power
THE CENTRAL QUESTIONS
Where the debate begins
Why should government perform some functions but not others? • When, if ever, may coercion be tolerated? • Where should the limits of political power be drawn?
Read the QuestionsTHE THEORY
Foundations
Structural functional limits
Governments face unavoidable limits of information, economic calculation, incentives, and error correction that no concentration of power can eliminate
A principle with strict limits
Government action may be tolerated only under narrowly defined conditions and an exceptionally high burden of proof
THE FORMAL TEST
The Theorem of Minimal Tolerance
Effective non-excludability
Relevant non-rivalry
Persistent collapse of voluntary provision
THE BOOK
A Theory of Minimal Tolerance
A forthcoming book exploring the exceptional limits of coercion
Discover the BookSSRN PREPRINT
Read the foundational paper
Free Riders, the State, and the “Institutional Technology of Last Resort”
Open on SSRN