Quote · verified Peter Thiel — "Freedom and Democracy Are Not Compatible"

In a 2009 essay for the libertarian Cato Institute ("The Education of a Libertarian"), the Palantir and PayPal co-founder wrote: "I no longer believe that freedom and democracy are compatible." In the same piece he lamented that expanding the franchise to women and the growth of welfare beneficiaries had made democratic politics inhospitable to his ideals, and pointed to seasteading, cyberspace and space as escapes from democratic oversight. The quote is real and frequently cited; what it implies about his agenda is the subject of legitimate debate.