Don’t even try anymore, FRiend.
Those folks are one-trick ponies, so enamored with the (R) brand they can’t see what you’re showing.
All they think the (L) is about are drugs (Ownership of Self), isolationism (’cuz what we got going on now is making us SO much safer), open borders (no welfare state, per the (L), not so much a flood anymore, no?), gay marriage (of which gov’t has NO reason to be in the midst thereof), etc. ad nauseam.
They don’t see the great swath of similarities to whittle down Fedzilla, (repeal 16/17th, enforce 9th/10th), dismantle all alphabet agencies and regs, and generally get the gov’t back to A1S8, from which to come together and FIGHT.
Prob. the same that believe they’re ‘owed’ what they ‘paid’ into SS/Medicare too. *rolls eyes*
what you are describing are what I call the capital L libertarians.... and they are in the minority..
Most if not all of us small l libertarians are what you could call “strict constitutionalists”...
we could also be called disgruntled conservatives, reason being we see the erosion of rights and personal liberties coming from the so called “conservatives” every bit as dangerous as the libs....
In my opinion, the libertarian platform ( i do not agree with all of it, but most of it is constitutionally based )takes us down a path more in line with our constitution than the current crop of pubs, that have a platform and toss it out the window when elected... here is what i think...
1) the best defense is an overwhelming and sustainable offensive capability... but, this does not make us the worlds policemen..
2) the war on drugs, although a nice thought, is a disaster to personal rights and liberties. You may think that this is about pot, it is not. Try going to your doctor and getting a prescription for pain medication, or go and buy some antihistamies. Tally up the numbers of dead people shot by mistake in the war on drugs, homes destroyed, people imprisoned... not to mention the massive amount of dollars and the number of alphabet agencies in place simply because of the war on drugs..
3) regulation of the borders and immigration is a power designated to the feds. The word illegal still has meaning in my eyes, and the current crop of pubs are hell bent on opening up our borders.. I am dead against it..
4) i personally know of more libertarians that want to repeal the 17th amendment than i do pubs... enough said there..
5) gay marriage, you are correct, the feds have no place in that mess, as it was not a power granted to them.. it is a 10th amendment issue by default.. if you do not want it to be in your state, then you have the power to remove those that back it from office at the ballot box, or simply move to another state..
6) social security can be eliminated within a generation, without throwing people out on the streets, if there was a politican with the guts to tackle it.. I have presented a plan on many threads, only to get silence back.. i guess people either want it all or want it all gone right now... sigh...
having said all of that, i ask you a question...
are all republicans conservative?
in the same spirit as your answer, not all libertarians are ron paul nut jobs.. the nut jobs get the press ( gee i wonder why )but they are in the minority...
all i ask that the baby not be thrown out the window with the bath water..
hope this kinda clears things up for you my FRiend..