The core theses of The Sovereign Individual

1. Transition to the information age**

- The world is moving from an industrial to an information economy where knowledge and digital technology are the key sources of wealth.

- Physical location, borders, and traditional industrial labor become less important than human capital and mobility.

2. Decline of nation‑state power**

- Digital technology, cryptography, and mobile capital make it harder for states to tax and control their citizens.

- States will increasingly need to compete for citizens and capital like firms compete for customers.

3. Rise of the sovereign individual**

- Highly skilled, mobile individuals can opt out of high‑tax, highly regulated jurisdictions.

- Those who earn digitally and operate globally gain far more personal sovereignty, playing states off against each other.

4. Erosion of the welfare state

- As productive taxpayers become more mobile, financing large redistributive systems becomes harder.

- This creates tension between mobile high earners and more “stationary” groups dependent on transfers.

5. Crisis of mass democracy

- The existing mix of mass democracy, heavy redistribution, and debt‑financed government is seen as unstable in the information age.

- Jurisdictions that insist on high redistribution become less attractive than more flexible, low‑tax environments.

6. Growth of private and digital alternatives

- Services like security, education, and even dispute resolution increasingly move into private or semi‑private arrangements and online networks.

- Competing legal and governance frameworks emerge, partially bypassing traditional state monopolies.