What Would Zoe Do? Police Abuse and Economics 101

My name is Zoe, and I’m what you might call a rebel — against the state, that is! I hope that you have checked out the  to my upcoming movie Silver Circle, in which I am in the starring role! I am here to offer my advice and to answer your questions related to freedom fighting on a weekly basis. Please submit your questions to !

Zoe,
I believe that I have my hands on a serious case of police abuse and I don’t know what to do about it next?  Should I submit a case to the police station or should I go straight to a lawyer?  What about if I don’t want to work “in the system” to seek justice?

Sincerely,
Police Brutality Must End

PBME,
I’m sorry that this has happened to you!  No innocent life deserves to have unnecessary force used against them — especially by that of the police, who are supposed to be around to protect us!

There a bunch of actions that you should be taking if you believe you have a case — and you questioned which you should or should not do — but really, you should be doing absolutely everything that you can to seek justice.  First, research into your local police department’s internal affairs system and file a report.  Typically, this has the slowest response time of all the actions you could be taking, so do it right away.  Be sure to follow up as much as possible, so many cases slip through the cracks this way because the police may respond telling you, “It’s been taken care of,” but really they didn’t do anything at all to the officer(s) in violation.

Next, seek legal advice — and for free.   allow you to submit your case and real life lawyers respond with information for you to look over.  Try a few, not just one, of these websites because you don’t want some money-hungry lawyer trying to take a potentially losing case just to score some profit.

At the same time as seeking advice, look for non-profits and organizations such as the ACLU to see if any of them can help you.  Often times they have many lawyers that work pro bono (free) on your case.  Also, reaching out to these organizations, even if they don’t take your case to the max, will help boost your chances of the internal affairs office taking you seriously (make sure to mention your reports).

Lastly, and answering your question of how to seek justice without working “in the system,” reach out to all the media sources possible.  Issue a press release, similar to that of what liberty activist George Donnelly did when a Pete Eyre was arrested for refusing to take off his hat in a court room.  If you don’t want to take the case to court or go any further, hopefully your media attention will be enough to shine light on the issue and prevent it from happening again.

Hopefully if you try one or all of the above actions, justice will be served.  Remember to keep up with everything you do, remain well documented, and never give up!  I wish you the best of luck and I hope this is resolved.

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Zoe,
I am an economics n00b and I really know nothing at all.  However, I usually follow my gut instincts and end up being called a supporter of free markets.  I really would like to have a better base philosophy, so do you have any recommendations on where to start?

Sincerely,
Exploring Economics

EE,
There are a ton of resources out there for learning economics, and if you are usually identified with being on the free market side of the coin (no pun), then you first like to begin exploring in the field of Austrian economics (vs. Keynesian economics).

There are many organizations that not only publish literature on Austrian economics, but hold events, conferences and seminars that you can attend to learn more in a hands-on manner.  Some examples include the Mises Institute and the Foundation for Economic Education.  If you are newbie, I recommend the Mises forums — feel free to login and ask as many questions as you want, members will jump all over the chance to help you learn.

You can also look into the study of agorism, or counter economics, to get a grasp on an idea that many free market supporters hold in high regard.  I would consider the Rebels and myself agorists because of our little silver production line . . . working around the system to create a new, better one (and with no government involved)!  Also, agorism is very hands-on, so if you’re looking to jump right into your studies, try it out!

Also, I’m glad to know that you’re gut instincts lean in this direction — the best economics, in my opinion, lack the use of force against others and support peaceful, voluntary interactions.  Best of luck in your studies!

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Thank you for your questions this week! Remember to  with some more for next time!