Vernor Vinge—the Hugo Award–winning science fiction author who passed away in March 2024—imagined a world where individuals, not governments, held the power. His 1981 novella True Names featured hackers known as "warlocks" fighting a corrupt, incompetent government, while his 1985 novel The Peace War made the case for anarcho-capitalism.
"People are more diverse and distributed and resourceful and even coordinated than any government," Vinge told Reason in 2007. "That's a power we already have in free markets," he said. His ideas and influence extended far beyond libertarian circles; his 1993 essay, "The Coming Technological Singularity," has become a guiding concept in the modern tech industry.
