Posted on 03/02/2006 1:31:36 PM PST by NewRomeTacitus
Harry Browne, who was the Libertarian Party presidential candidate in 1996 and 2000, is reported by multiple sources to have died yesterday. I just confirmed the general information with Jim Babka of DownSizeDC. DownSizeDC intends to be distributing pertinent information by e-mail and on their website later this evening.
Pending a statement from family or friends, the best (speculative) published source of information about his condition is currently on Wiki:
"In June of 2005 an unknown neurological illness confined him to a wheelchair. After spending a considerable amount of time in the hospital, he resumed some of his writing and speaking, though it was uncertain whether he will walk again. He succumbed to illness on 1 March 2006."
RIP .. truly great American.
I heard the last part of a radio interview he did in 1996. He closed by giving out the Libertarian Party phone number, which ends in "1776". He added, "Those of you educated in public schools will remember that was the year Columbus discovered America". He was a funny man, very intelligent, and very nice. I'll bet he's getting a great welcome in Heaven from our Founding Fathers.
May God comfort his grieving family.
An earlier, greater Libertarian candidate is still with us.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hospers
A very distinguished gentleman, indeed.
Harry was a good speaker with a knack for catch phrases. The one he used in his '96 campaign was "Government doesn't work." He'd continue "It can't keep our streets safe, it can't educate our children, it can't even get us our mail on time. So why on earth would you trust it with your retirement money?" He was a real believer in Liberty. A great man has left us. We are diminished for his passing.
He was a great communicator, and an asset to the movement. It's so sad to see him gone.
RIP. I do not wish to speak ill of the dead but Harry took a rather strange turn in his politics a couple of years ago, even for a Libertarian.
Sad. My first presidential vote ever was cast for him.
Rest in peace, Mr. Browne.
Then don't.
.
Also, a fellow alumnus of Brooklyn College.
:)
I wish they would have allowed him in more debates.
I wish they would have allowed him in more debates.
Or any of them. He'd have cleaned Clinton's, Dole's, Bush's, AND Gore's clocks in a debate!! He and Nader would have made the debates real, instead of the press junket they've become.
My condolences. :-(
While I do not subscribe to all of the Libertarian platform, I believe its leaders to be men of principle and integrity, Harry Browne foremost among them.
Sad news, my friend voted for him. RIP Mr. Browne.
Thursday March 2, 4:44 pm ET
WASHINGTON, March 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Harry Browne, best-selling author and two-time Libertarian Party presidential nominee, died in his home in Franklin, Tennessee, Wednesday night, March 1, after a long illness. He is survived by his wife Pamela and his daughter Autumn. He was 72.
Browne broke into national prominence in the early 1970s with three best- selling books. "How You Can Profit from the Coming Devaluation" was the first to make the best-seller lists. His next book, "How I Found Freedom in an Unfree World," is widely regarded as a modern libertarian classic and has gone through many printings and editions. His third book, "You Can Profit from a Monetary Crisis," reached #1 on the New York Times best-seller list. Browne was also the author of 11 other books, including "Why Government Doesn't Work" and "The Great Libertarian Offer."
Browne twice ran for President as the nominee of the Libertarian Party in 1996 and 1997. He was a frequent guest on radio and TV, both as a political and financial commentator. Browne was a co-founder of the Downsize DC Foundation and DownsizeDC.org, Inc. and a strong advocate of that organization's "Read the Bills Act," which would require Congress to read every word of every bill before voting on it.
Browne was born on June 17, 1933 in New York City. He died of Lou Gherig's disease.
Jim Babka, President of Downsize DC, was a close friend and associate, who guest-hosted Harry Browne's radio show during his illness. Mr. Babka is available for interviews about the life and legacy of Harry Browne.
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Source: Downsize DC Foundation; DownsizeDC.org, Inc.
I didn't. I considered myself a libertarian at the time.
I don't consider myself a Libertarian either; however, since I didn't like Pres. Clinton or Sen. Dole, I voted for Harry Browne in 1996.
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