As scrapmen, we shall undoubtedly be useful to society, used by society, and even paid by society. However, society will never give us a place at the dinner table. We shall remain on the margins of mainstream thinking, just as scrapyards are restricted to the margins of our cities. Society needs scrapmen, but it glorifies builders. It is time to build, and we have precious few bricks that we can call our own.
Libertarianism is a philosophical mudhut.
Let us, then, pillage the temples of antiquity for building materials that have stood the test of time. Indeed, I borrowed one of his names to give to the third of my three sons. He also placed the idea of natural law above all states and religions. Voltaire is not just an authoritative name from whom we can draw quotes, arguments and precedents, he is a philosopher whose ideas live on. At the end of Candide, Voltaire tells us that when all governments, religions and ideals are found to be false, we should not despair, nor should we seek the shelter of new philosophical certainties.