<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" version="2.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[RSS Feed]]></title><description><![CDATA[RSS Feed]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com</link><image><url>http://direct.ecency.com/logo512.png</url><title>RSS Feed</title><link>http://direct.ecency.com</link></image><generator>RSS for Node</generator><lastBuildDate>Fri, 10 Apr 2026 21:12:37 GMT</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="http://direct.ecency.com/@thomas.shirk/rss" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><item><title><![CDATA[Profits Are Not Confiscated Product]]></title><description><![CDATA[The Marxist idea that profit is excess value confiscated from the workers by the capitalist is patently wrong. Profit is the default income with or without a wage earner; wages are deductions from profit.]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/capitalism/@thomas.shirk/profits-are-not-confiscated-product</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/capitalism/@thomas.shirk/profits-are-not-confiscated-product</guid><category><![CDATA[capitalism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 21 Sep 2016 14:47:39 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://images.ecency.com/p/BRWJ2XuBRXQxQtwjkpK59RMNMgNesBJwy4Bj3nLWLpZf3THp?format=match&amp;mode=fit" length="0" type="false"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Average Joe's Principle of Self-Ownership]]></title><description><![CDATA[My name is Average Joe and I own myself. I can be sure I own myself through simple common sense. Presenting a rational argument for self-ownership in simple layman's terms where logic is basic common sense]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/average-joe-s-principle-of-self-ownership</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/average-joe-s-principle-of-self-ownership</guid><category><![CDATA[voluntaryism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 15 Sep 2016 16:00:06 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://images.ecency.com/p/RtfsyWaiw3sN3zsxHVbPKJXUwKfiGb248odzpb141FUoNAJzb26X1Z8CqDx6KCHUk1MGZpFkeGhuHDFpTjjvC8eus54Q3ZPRhnZx6BTn7H8W7KyWGvPjJbdpqLc4Rqzyi4gEwgWap31MbEeEKsPND5hKX9LsXsgfTwcY4XpGWUaUFDb38WbnNta59fzootr1GExVvd3muMqbMQ5rkgZ4eMSr5uAeMU4onqGMrQwgsyiXZV6RuRXr941sUZwDNe?format=match&amp;mode=fit" length="0" type="false"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Rational Ethics, Dehydrated]]></title><description><![CDATA[People are often intimidated by logic. They should not be. Everyone uses logic, they just don't realize it. Most of my effort so far has been to establish a framework of rational ethics which builds upon]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/rational-ethics-dehydrated</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/rational-ethics-dehydrated</guid><category><![CDATA[voluntaryism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 08 Sep 2016 18:11:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://images.ecency.com/p/BRWJ2XuBRXQxQtwjkpK59RMNMgNesAzwefbdW1W1wJZ2ZpRC?format=match&amp;mode=fit" length="0" type="false"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Spock Fallacy]]></title><description><![CDATA["The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one" only works voluntarily "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few" -- Captain Spock, Wrath of Khan The above scene]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/the-spock-fallacy</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/the-spock-fallacy</guid><category><![CDATA[voluntaryism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 07 Sep 2016 19:11:15 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://images.ecency.com/p/BRWJ2XuBRXQxQtwjkpK59RMNMgNesAZxMDgCA9Ut7DGhEQw8?format=match&amp;mode=fit" length="0" type="false"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Own yourself:  you already do.]]></title><description><![CDATA[In many ways, "self-ownership" is a fancy way of saying "free will". It is the acknowledgement that only the actor may make decisive action and thus that both the responsibility for]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/own-yourself-you-already-do</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/own-yourself-you-already-do</guid><category><![CDATA[voluntaryism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 01 Sep 2016 18:38:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://images.ecency.com/p/2QhhddTGwaHy3i3MPkgBTZBEoyLW2XpFqL7BxmCyHkmmZMyf4EouAcetoqrjdsbrdY2sVetvnMpPsT6gQxP8?format=match&amp;mode=fit" length="0" type="false"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[On Property Rights]]></title><description><![CDATA[Rights and property are inextricably linked and can only be exercised by the individual. The right to self-ownership and the right to property naturally extend into a peaceful and free society. In a break]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/on-property-rights</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/on-property-rights</guid><category><![CDATA[voluntaryism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 31 Aug 2016 17:27:12 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://images.ecency.com/p/B69zEgfimpFbRG716zh81sUjMyDURL3bdVvYie6ChAtUvHRfskiczeEjrsdidXUfJaKP7aBTtKfMLQsoSbDFsoyAm1MZSc7nNmzZMG5c?format=match&amp;mode=fit" length="0" type="false"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Evil Corporations]]></title><description><![CDATA[The word "corporation" is becoming synonymous with "evil" in Western society, if not the globe. However, most people are completely unaware of what a corporation is, what function it]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/capitalism/@thomas.shirk/evil-corporations</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/capitalism/@thomas.shirk/evil-corporations</guid><category><![CDATA[capitalism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 29 Aug 2016 22:13:24 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://images.ecency.com/p/BRWJ2XuBRXQxQtwjkpK59RMNMgNesC6vd9F3DgiKLiDiL6Dt?format=match&amp;mode=fit" length="0" type="false"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Obscenely obscene profits obscenity]]></title><description><![CDATA["Obscene profits" is a term at once vague and arbitrary, all of it based upon the idea that a person can somehow determine that another's profit is, somehow, more than they deserve. That anyone]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/capitalism/@thomas.shirk/obscenely-obscene-profits-obscenity</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/capitalism/@thomas.shirk/obscenely-obscene-profits-obscenity</guid><category><![CDATA[capitalism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 26 Aug 2016 15:00:39 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://images.ecency.com/p/BRWJ2XuBRXQxQtwjkpK59RMNMgNesAZtMA6Up7uHRXKw3DdY?format=match&amp;mode=fit" length="0" type="false"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[Tax handouts for the rich]]></title><description><![CDATA[Arbitrarily defining larger numbers as "more than they deserve" does not justify theft Whenever a person of ample means -- especially one of the world's few billionaires -- stands to gain from]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/tax-handouts-for-the-rich</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/tax-handouts-for-the-rich</guid><category><![CDATA[voluntaryism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 25 Aug 2016 20:47:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://images.ecency.com/p/BRWJ2XuBRXQxQtwjkpK59RMNMgNesWRP9Af6MFrv5vXSBwjk?format=match&amp;mode=fit" length="0" type="false"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Journey Into Wisdom]]></title><description><![CDATA[A summary of a Voluntaryist position on natural rights This is the third and final piece in my series on a Voluntaryist position of "natural rights". The first two articles can be found here: "On Natural]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/the-journey-into-wisdom</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/the-journey-into-wisdom</guid><category><![CDATA[voluntaryism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Wed, 17 Aug 2016 15:55:57 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://images.ecency.com/p/BRWJ2XuBRXQxQtwjkpK59RMNMgNesC3KzS3LfWb876P88QWJ?format=match&amp;mode=fit" length="0" type="false"/></item><item><title><![CDATA[DELETED]]></title><description><![CDATA[Deleted]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/introduceyourself/@thomas.shirk/hello-my-name-is-tom-and-i-m-mildly-insane</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/introduceyourself/@thomas.shirk/hello-my-name-is-tom-and-i-m-mildly-insane</guid><category><![CDATA[introduceyourself]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 16 Aug 2016 17:47:00 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Read me my rights]]></title><description><![CDATA[The previous article in this series discussed the validity of the "natural rights" concept as well as set up a frame work for discerning what rights an individual naturally possesses. This article]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/read-me-my-rights</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/read-me-my-rights</guid><category><![CDATA[voluntaryism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 15 Aug 2016 21:52:36 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[On Natural Rights]]></title><description><![CDATA[Debate between Voluntaryism and other philosophies often times come down to the concept of "natural rights". Inevitably, the Voluntaryist position on the concept of "natural rights"]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/on-natural-rights</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/voluntaryism/@thomas.shirk/on-natural-rights</guid><category><![CDATA[voluntaryism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Fri, 12 Aug 2016 18:05:18 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[THAT'S NOT FAIR!]]></title><description><![CDATA["A society that puts equality before freedom will get neither. A society that puts freedom before equality will get a high degree of both." - Milton Friedman In present culture, a great deal]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/anarchy/@thomas.shirk/that-s-not-fair</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/anarchy/@thomas.shirk/that-s-not-fair</guid><category><![CDATA[anarchy]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Thu, 11 Aug 2016 18:40:09 GMT</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Money is not the root of any evil]]></title><description><![CDATA[INTRODUCTION "Money is the root of all evil" is, in addition to being a sorry mistranslation of the biblical phrase it is cribbing, a common and tragically erroneous refrain in modern society.]]></description><link>http://direct.ecency.com/capitalism/@thomas.shirk/money-is-not-the-root-of-any-evil</link><guid isPermaLink="true">http://direct.ecency.com/capitalism/@thomas.shirk/money-is-not-the-root-of-any-evil</guid><category><![CDATA[capitalism]]></category><dc:creator><![CDATA[thomas.shirk]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 08 Aug 2016 19:31:03 GMT</pubDate></item></channel></rss>