The central theme of Hans Hermann Hoppe’s work is the institution of private property, which he asserts as the foundational requirement for peaceful and prosperous human relations and civilization. Hoppe aims to logically prove that private property is essential for maintaining peace among individuals, as conflicts arise from the scarcity of physical resources. When two or more individuals seek to utilize the same physical means for different ends, conflicts inevitably occur. Consequently, to prevent or resolve such conflicts, a definite criterion of justice is necessary, regulating the proper use and ownership of scarce resources. The key to conflict avoidance lies in ensuring all resources are privately owned and clearly identifiable regarding ownership.
To establish private property, Hoppe argues that it must originate from acts of original appropriation—where individuals claim ownership by actively taking possession of unclaimed resources. This idea emphasizes that only the first appropriator can claim ownership without conflict since no earlier owners exist to contest their claim. Moreover, this notion extends to human ownership; while individuals have ownership of their own bodies, no one can claim ownership over another’s. Hence, all lawful ownership and property rights trace back to original acts of appropriation or voluntary exchanges without conflict.
Hoppe also underscores that natural law emerges from these insights, positing that laws should be discovered rather than arbitrarily established. He argues that legislation, which represents human-made laws, distorts natural justice, often promoting conflict instead of peace. Conflicts will continue to arise, and when they do, impartial adjudication must occur. Disputes about property ownership necessitate neutral third-party arbitration since individuals involved in a conflict cannot impartially judge the situation. Thus, proper conflict resolution involves appealing to an unbiased entity capable of ensuring fair outcomes based on established principles of property rights.
However, Hoppe contends that deviations from the principles of natural law lead to social order distortion and the rise of the State as a monopolistic force of violence. Instead of fostering peace, the State often exacerbates conflict by usurping the role of natural law arbitration. The myth perpetuated that the State is necessary for civilization and social cooperation is erroneous; true social stability arises from voluntary cooperation under established property rights. A monopolistic institution inevitably becomes biased in its favor during disputes, leading to increased conflict and a perpetual cycle of injustice.
The appeal of State power lies in its ability to extract resources from the populace without the same voluntary mechanisms required in private property exchanges. The bureaucratic structure of the State fosters an environment where self-serving legislation thrives, undermining the principles of natural law. As the State grows, it engulfs more aspects of social life, curtailing freedoms and reducing individuals’ control over their property. The State manages to sustain this power due to widespread social conditioning—whereby citizens become accustomed to State control and often fail to recognize the inherent moral injustice of such authority.
Ultimately, Hoppe insists that to dismantle the current State apparatus, its legitimacy must be critically examined and discredited. Progress will depend on a societal shift where influential public figures and intellectuals recognize the State’s predatory nature and advocate for a return to principles of private property anarchism and natural law. A significant portion of the general populace must also join this recognition, leading to a broad-based delegitimization of the State. Only then, according to Hoppe’s interpretation of the Pareto principle, can society begin to evolve toward a more peaceful and just social structure free from corrupting State influence. This transformation remains a daunting task, indicating the necessity for sustained and collective intellectual efforts to pave the way for this fundamental societal change.
