Kiki and the basic moral principle

I asked Google's AI (whom we call "Kiki") to find a post from the archives that relates to what's currently in the news, and it came up with the one about the 'basic moral principle'. It's actually central to Dr Green's ideas — as she says, it is the basic moral principle.

Here's why Kiki thought the post was relevant right now:

This post is pertinent to the current geopolitical and economic crises dominating the headlines in May 2026:

• Taxation and Individual Freedom: Green argues that "people ought to be taxed as little as possible" and critiques the use of taxes to fund what she terms "collectively organised oppression." This aligns with current news regarding African countries increasing efforts to tax high-income individuals and the broader global energy and fuel crisis that is driving up the cost of living.

• Opposition to the "Collective": She criticises the "modern ideology" that forces individuals to submit to the views of the majority. This theme resonates with the ongoing "Project Freedom" and the 2026 Iran war, which have sparked worldwide protests against state intervention and the global energy crisis.

• The Individual vs. State Powers: Green's call to deprive socially appointed agents—like doctors and teachers—of "immoral" powers is reflected in current debates over compulsory education reform and the rising influence of left-wing ideology in academia, topics she and guest posters like Christine Fulcher continue to revisit.

Here is an extract, but you can read the full piece here. (Warning for the sensitive: Dr Green refers to state-administered medicine and education as 'organised crime'.) The piece is also a chapter in her book The Corpse and the Kingdom.

Modern society has lost sight of the only moral principle of any importance, so that the individual citizen is basically unprotected against unlimited oppression. ...

If I say that people should be taxed as little as possible and least of all to finance collectively organised oppression, this depends on the basic moral principle that:

Society should interfere as little as possible with the individual's freedom to evaluate for himself the various factors which affect his existential situation, and to react to it as effectively as his resources permit.

The basic moral principle applies between individuals as well, and everyone should respect the right of others to evaluate for themselves the weighting to be placed on the factors which enter into any given situation, since in reality the existential situation is one of total uncertainty. However, it is only socially appointed agents of the collective, such as doctors, teachers, social workers etc, who are invested with legally conferred powers to impose their valuations on others, and who should be deprived of these (immoral) powers. ...

On the basis of the basic moral principle ... the functions of society acting on a collective basis should be as limited as possible. As Herbert Spencer suggests, they should be limited to what is necessary to protect the liberty of individuals from encroachment by other individuals.