Libertarian In Name Only (The Incoherence Of Open Borders Advocacy)

American Rattlesnake ^ | February 5, 2011 | Gerard Perry

[OddLane]

First of all, let me apologize for being derelict in addressing Will Wilkinson’s series of columns for The Economist. I had wanted to to respond to these short polemics, written as an ongoing dialogue between he and David Frum during the height of the DREAM Act’s legislative push during a lame duck session of Congress, earlier but multiple factors prevented me from doing so.

Since the focus of this site at the time was on preventing passage of DREAM, I felt that our resources could be better utilized by conveying information that you could use in persuading key senators to vote against this piecemeal amnesty, rather than rehashing the pros and cons of the bill itself.

I had intended on going back and delineating my philosophical objections to Will Wilkinson’s approach to immigration this January, but was prevented from doing so by a persistent flu bug. Now that I’m better able to marshal my arguments, I’m going to try and explain not the devastating consequences that would result from the enactment of his ideas-something that I’ve addressed at length on this site-but why those ideas are completely and utterly fraudulent. At least, when espoused by a purported “libertarian.”

Now, let me begin by giving credit to those open borders enthusiasts from the ostensible right, usually those working for corporate entitities heavily dependent upon low-skilled, inexpensive labor imported from abroad, who defend their stance in purely economic terms. Even though they are not forthright enough to admit that they want unfettered immigration because it will lower their labor costs by slashing the wages commanded by prospective American employees, they do not mask their their support for open borders through pseudo-intellectual posturing and logically inconsistent arguments masquerading as Hayekian dogma.

[MrEdd]

But open borders does make sense if your real main issues are sex and inebriation whenever and however you want it. The open borders crowd are dopertarians.

[OddLane]

That seems like a more fitting term, since they are dopes.

[armordog99]

I have some libertarian leanings and was attracted to the party many years ago. Until I found out their position on open borders. A country has a right to control non-citizens trying to get into that country. To not do this is suicide.

[padre35]

Nationalist Libertarianism makes sense.

[freespirited]

I have some libertarian leanings and was attracted to the party many years ago. Until I found out their position on open borders

Same here. On this issue they are hopelessly naive at best and at worst downright dangerous.

[=8 mrrabbit 8=]

That’s because they really aren’t libertarian’s, they are anarchists hiding in libertarian clothing.

A true and honest libertarian like myself understands that it stops right at the border where at the very least - a mere minimum of a state must be maintained and enforced.

Which is exactly what the founders did. They were and still are to this day incredibly intelligent people.

What we have today for government however is simply downright scary...

=8-)