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Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Clayton — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 19:26:35 GMT

@Jack Roberts: I fully understand - I wasn't trying to put you on the spot.

*putting on thinking cap*

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Jack Roberts — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 18:52:55 GMT

I would prefer not to say of course, but if you are smart enough you could work it out. I would request that you don't post it, if you do work it out. No it is not the FED.

I am just an underpaid IT system admin though :P

I am actually employed by an IT managed services (or out sourcing) company and they have various clients in various sectors. So I move around a bit as well.

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Clayton — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 17:39:40 GMT

I work at a Financial Regulatory body that is often mistaken for a public institution if that counts.

You work at the Fed???

Clayton -

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Autolykos — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 15:15:45 GMT

excel:
@Autolykos:

Yeah, it's a weird moral question. Which is more moral, to benefit from a violent system, but not sustain it (with tax money), or to not benefit from it (sort of) but to sustain it with your efforts.

I think it's accurate to say that one is sustaining something only if he has the intention of doing so. Since I only relinquish money for taxes because I don't want to be imprisoned (or worse), I don't think I'm sustaining "the system". The money I relinquish could be said to sustain it, but that requires a different, impersonal meaning for "sustain". But that was the case even with my previous job.

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Jack Roberts — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 14:21:57 GMT

I work at a Financial Regulatory body that is often mistaken for a public institution if that counts.

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Al_Gore the Idiot — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 12:44:29 GMT

I simply hated the job. It was boring and monotonous. That was the main reason I left. If I do something again with IP, it won't be working for someone else.

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

excel — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 08:11:08 GMT

@Autolykos:

Yeah, it's a weird moral question. Which is more moral, to benefit from a violent system, but not sustain it (with tax money), or to not benefit from it (sort of) but to sustain it with your efforts.

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

fountainhead — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 03:27:52 GMT

Al_Gore the Idiot:
I worked for the Federal government for 10 years - intellectual property. Was not a libertarian prior to starting. Was a libertarian when I got out. Became a libertarian about halfway during that stint. In fact it was at work when I stumbled upon the mises.org website for the first time. I even participated in forums while at working for the Fed.

Haha, didn't the irony of browsing Mises at work kill you? :) I too, became more of a Libertarian as I spent more time in the public sector. I still love my job though.

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Esuric — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 19:03:20 GMT

No, but I would like to.

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Al_Gore the Idiot — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 18:48:07 GMT

I worked for the Federal government for 10 years - intellectual property. Was not a libertarian prior to starting. Was a libertarian when I got out. Became a libertarian about halfway during that stint. In fact it was at work when I stumbled upon the mises.org website for the first time. I even participated in forums while at working for the Fed.

Did not believe in what I was doing, but still worked. Money was decent and job security was good. Quit the job when I saved up a good bit of money. Now just relaxing and sitting back. I may even consider going back to intellectual property should I return to the workforce. Maybe as a consultant.

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Clayton — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 18:16:11 GMT

+1 Dylan - a good reason not to work for the government is that it's almost certainly soul-crushing work and deprives you of the opportunity to develop real marketable skills. I think it's generally up to the individual's conscience. I think people should bear in mind that, even in a private law society, there would be assassins, mercenaries, and so on.

That's why I think it's unfair to single out police or soldiers as being engaged in particularly aggressive government occupations - it's the system itself that is aggressive and that needs to be changed. Security services, regional defense. etc. are all perfectly noble occupations if separated from tax-funding. The occupation of postal delivery is no less tainted by its tax-funded, monopoly status - it is the tax-funding and monopolization that taints the occupation, not the particular duties performed in the occupation. To the extent that those duties deviate from what would obtain in a free market, that is again the result of the prior aggression of taxation.

Clayton -

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Kmelfina — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 17:48:02 GMT

Working on a secondary education degree to teach math/economics (basics, maybe I'd add a little Austrian economic perspective to ward off famous statist myths). I'm morally troubled but I don't know if Virginia has private institutions (other than "Governor's schools") near my hometown, but before I dove into Austrian Economics/Anarchro-capitalism I wanted to teach mathematics at my old high school since it's a subject I love and still want to after. Since VA a right-to-work state there won't be obstacles to go through like unions.

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Dylan of Rivia — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 15:31:32 GMT

I agree that, in general terms, it is preferable to work in the private rather than in the public sector. However, I think a libertarian shouldn’t stop doing the job he likes because the state monopolizes the service (or makes it very difficult to have the same job in a private company).

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

eliotn — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 15:04:39 GMT

Well I work at NOAA, so I guess it counts. However, I am seeking opportunities outside of this, as the experience of the pubic sector is not good. I can evaluate what its like at a later time.

Re: Any of you work in the public sector?

Autolykos — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 13:59:14 GMT

But then you'd be living off of money taken aggressively from others. That's not so morally superior, if you ask me.

Indeed, that was a big part of the reason why I sought a job in the private sector. As a software engineer for the government-contracting division of a large company, the bulk of my salary - at least 80%, by my reckoning - came from taxes. That makes me a net tax consumer for the time being. I think it goes without saying that I hope to rectify this situation.