Samuel Edward Konkin III
| Samuel Edward Konkin III | |
|---|---|
| Born |
July 8, 1947 Saskatchewan |
| Died | February 23, 2004 (aged 56) West Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Other names | SEK3 |
| Spouse(s) | Sheila Wymer |
|
Main interests
|
Anarchism, Economics, Natural law, Political economy |
|
Notable ideas
|
Founder of Agorism |
|
Influences
|
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Samuel Edward Konkin III (8 July 1947 – 23 February 2004), also known as SEK3, was the author of the publication New Libertarian Manifesto and a proponent of a political philosophy which he named agorism.
Konkin was born in Saskatchewan, to Samuel Edward Konkin II and Helen. He had one brother, Alan. He married Sheila Wymer during 1990 and had one son, Samuel Evans-Konkin IV. The marriage ended soon afterward. Konkin was also notable for his style of dress: "To show his anarchist beliefs, he dressed completely in black, a color associated with that movement since the late nineteenth century."
On 23 February 2004, Konkin died in his apartment in West Los Angeles, California, of natural causes. He was buried alongside his father in Edmonton, Alberta.
Konkin considered libertarianism as radical. He was an initiator of the Agorist Institute.
Konkin rejected voting, believing it to be inconsistent with libertarian ethics. He likewise opposed involvement with the US Libertarian Party, which he regarded as a statist co-option of libertarianism. He was an opponent of influential minarchist philosopher Robert Nozick, and referred to Nozick's devotees as "Nozis."
Konkin presents his strategy for achieving a libertarian society in his aforementioned manifesto. Since he rejected voting and other means by which people typically attempt social change, he encouraged people to withdraw their consent from the state by devoting their economic activities to black market and grey market sources, which would not be taxed or regulated. "Konkin called transactions on these markets, as well as other activities that bypassed the State, 'counter-economics.' Peaceful transactions take place in a free market, or agora: hence his term 'agorism' for the society he sought to achieve." He also strongly opposed the idea of intellectual property.
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