[monday]

"The key word in my statement was public. Private armies choose whom to defend. Private roads exclude those who either cannot afford or undesirable for other reasons. "

I didn't say that all services commonly refered to as public could be privatized, but only that many could be in the future. Already many neighborhood associations maintain the roads and lighting in their neighborhoods. These are open to the public.

[TopQuark]

I didn't say that all services commonly refered to as public could be privatized, but only that many could be in the future. Yes they could, as they were before. We reflected on it as society and decided that we do not want street lighting to be private, for that provides for exclusion.

Already many neighborhood associations maintain the roads and lighting in their neighborhoods. These are open to the public. You are absolutely correct. Note, however, that these associations are a form of government in that they have a coercive power. Every member of that locale MUST pay for that lighting. As an outsider, I cannot buy a house there unless I agree to these terms. Your example illusrtates my point.