Also posted on Hoplotarian and Bandoleered Bookworm.
Is what we want always a lack of something?
I've been looking for the word that succinctly and accurately represents what we are looking for in the "liberty movement." Of late, "libertarian" has fit the bill, because "liberal" has been tainted by back-biting power-hungry abusers.
"Freedom" leads back to "freeneck." Unfortunately, a "freeneck" is a guy lacking a yoke.
"Liberty" instantly - for me - brings to mind "at liberty," as in a sailor solider that has been allowed to have a day off from his contracted servitude. There is a good, basic foundation for "liberty," especially after the United States revolutionary civil war, but it is still tainted by being let loose from something.
What's the right word? Maybe it needs to be invented - or discovered. Or maybe it will never really exist.
This all leads back to the left's fundamental criticism of the "freedom movement" - that liberty is all about "negative rights." So is what we want just negative.
Even if you journey down the path to no government, the word for it is negative - "anarchy," which means "no ruler." Continuing down this rabbit hole, which doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad thing, we can come up with a word that is foundational and positive.
Let's break down "anarchy:" "an" = "without" + "archy" = "ruler." So what would be positive? "Self" + "ruler." "Autarchy." Oops! We did go down a rabbit hole. We ended up with an "absolute ruler," which is the absolute opposite of what I was getting at.
"Eaftos" is another form of "self" in Greek. "Know thyself" translated into "gnothi sauton" in Greek. "Sautonarchy" could be it, but it is hard to say. Shortened to "sautarchy" would leave us with "salty ruler" or "shoot ruler," if one confuses the Scottish and French words.
So what about Latin, because "anarchy really is about the same in Latin and Greek. We gets word for "self" like "sui," "sese," "ipse." "Suiarchy" is being used in a very-small scale on the Web. It might be the one. And it might be too close to "suicide." There are alternatives, or are there?
Nope. I don't think there are another way. "Sui" = "self" + "cide" = "murder." "Suiarchy:" "sui" = "self" + "archy" = "ruler."
Job done. Now we have a word that does not draw its strength from being negative, though it shares a stem that is used in a negative word. That's just the way it is.