Deleting the State by Aeon J. Skoble

Deleting the State

Requiem for an Illusion

Aeon J. Skoble

Independent Institute · Print & ebook · March 10, 2026

What if everything you believe about the state is a lie?

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Who it’s for
A philosophical challenge to Hobbesian fear, extending Nozick’s questions about the state.
Genres
Libertarianism, Political Philosophy, Civil Liberties
Published
Independent Institute, March 10, 2026

About this book

What if everything you believe about the state is a lie? Here is a bold challenge to centuries of political orthodoxy… Life is "nasty, brutish, and short," asserted 17th-century philosopher Thomas Hobbes. Without the state, he claimed, man is "in that condition which is called War... every man, against every man." His solution? Leviathan: the sovereign power, the guard against chaos. For centuries, most political philosophers have taken his argument for granted.

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But should they? Is the Hobbesian fear truly rooted in reality? If not, what happens to politics when we allow fear, not cooperation, to become foundational to our framework? Robert Nozick asked these same questions in Anarchy, State, and Utopia. These lucidly written pages extend these arguments even further—with some surprising conclusions. Aeon J. Skoble—professor of philosophy, bestselling author, and acclaimed political theorist—makes a powerful case that the state as we understand it today is not only morally unjustifiable, but also, thankfully, unnecessary. It has only the power we mistakenly grant it. What if we didn't? Packed with urgent lessons, original insights, and unparalleled philosophical rigor, this book is essential reading for anyone who dares imagine a freer world. Includes a new preface and afterword by the author.

Hobbesian Fear

A philosophical challenge to Hobbesian fear, extending Nozick’s questions about the state.

Come here for

  • Hobbes’s case for sovereign power, examined against the possibility of cooperation

Expect

  • An argument that the state is morally unjustifiable and unnecessary
  • A new preface and afterword by the author

Where it sits

Libertarianism92%
Political Philosophy71%
Civil Liberties42%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Political Philosophy
  • Political History & Ideas
  • Libertarianism
Authors
Aeon J. Skoble
Publisher
Independent Institute
Published
March 10, 2026
Format
Print & ebook
Reading lane
Political Philosophy