# A Conversation with Benjamin Powell: Anarchism as a Feasible Alternative

**URL:** <https://www.libertarianism.org/articles/conversation-benjamin-powell-anarchism-feasible-alternative>

**By** Benjamin Powell, Barbara Galletti

**Published:** April 30, 2025

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In an exclusive interview with Lib​er​tar​i​an​ism​.org, Benjamin Powell talked about the feasibility of anarchism. He discussed how it might be a better alternative for a lot of countries, its real world application in Somalia, and how the economics of anarchism could be applied to sweatshops.

## Anarchism: Can We Have Governance Without Government?

“Self-enforcing exchange is all around us. Even when the formal rules sometimes say that certain laws can be enforced, in practice they can’t be.”

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## Anarchy vs. Having a Failed State: The Case of Somalia

“You can write whatever you want down on paper, but that’s not your real world alternative.”

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## Can Sweatshops Help Economic Development?

“I know of no country today that is rich, that didn’t go through something like a sweatshop-stage of economic development.”

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