RE: ANARCHY! Is it Chaos?
but that doesn't require the presence of a govt. Common defense can be provided by security companies for local security, and national security agencies can bind together for defense from threats outside the country. There are private mediation services already in widespread use for resolving disputes. The courts are largely enforcers of govt-generated laws, some entirely immoral and unjust. Protection from bad products can come in the form of watchdog agencies like Consumer Reports and Underwriters Laboratories who test products and establish guidelines for safe products. Most of these services have been pushed to the sidelines by an intrusive govt, but before the 1950s, these services were in widespread use and our govt was much, much, smaller.