Regarding your Roman Fire Brigade example, we can now produce a much more effective system with modern bookkeeping technology. Instead of paying for fire protection as your house burns, you pay for the fire protection in advance. In fact, that's already the way it works in some parts of the world. You pay the fire department in advance (so they can pay for the upkeep of their machines), and if you don't, they have no obligation to put out your flaming house.
> You pay the fire department in advance (so they can pay for the upkeep of their machines), and if you don't, they have no obligation to put out your flaming house.
Two problems:
1. If not enough people pay for a fire brigade, the fire brigade is complete shit even if I do pay for it, because I can't fund a brigade all on my own. (If you tell me to move, you've lost the argument.)
2. If my neighbor's house is on fire, I really, really want the fire to be put out even if my neighbor hasn't paid for the brigade. I do not want the brigade to wait until my house is burning. (If you tell me to move, you've lost the argument.)
3. If you tell me to move, you've lost the argument.
