When one thinks of examples of anarchist scoial structures or legal stituations, Canada is almost always at the bottom of the list. We are more known for our nanny state, our socialized medicare and our arcane government regulations. But there is one area that, surprisingly, Canada is a leading light of anarchy in:

Abortion.

For those who do not know, Canada has not had an abortion law of any kind since January 28, 1988, the day the Supreme Court of Canada struck the existing law down in R. vs Morgentaler. Attempt to enact a new abortion law failed and since then, Canada has had no law of any kind surrounding abortion.

And what was the result?

I’ll let my friend JJ explain:

They said abortion rates would go up: the abortion rate has been continuously declining… and without regressive legislation. They said women would go batshit crazy and abort viable late-term fetuses with wreckless abandon right up to the moment before birth: 99.6% of abortions are performed early-term, and the late-term only for medical or health reasons. Not only are women NOT batshit crazy (but thanks for the vote of confidence, fetus fetishists — misogyny much?), but doctors, guided by ethics, won’t perform such procedures… and without regressive legislation.





A perfect example of an emergent, bottom-up generated social and legal framework that simply works. My contention is, that if this kind of free choice and self-regulation and policing can work for something as contentious as abortion, imagine how well it will work for other things – health care, trade, even policing.

Another example of The Wisdom of Crowds and evidence that people will make the “right” decisions if given the freedom to do so.

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