More and more, the state is proving itself incapable of getting a grip on the problems it allegedly set out to solve – whether it be caring for the poor, ensuring internal and external security, providing education, administering justice, or delivering medical care. Instead, it increasingly infringes on the individual rights of its citizens, with more and more being expropriated, placed under guardianship, and monitored. An increasing number of people recognize this, yet most continue to rely on state solutions – after all, we can't do without the state, can we? In "The Machinery of Freedom," David D. Friedman demonstrated in 1973 how it can be done: always focused on practical feasibility, he tackles challenging issues such as establishing a non-state judiciary and national defense, presenting surprising solutions. Friedman's classic has thus become a cult favorite.