I don’t refer to myself as a Libertarian but a mongrel of Regan conservative and libertarian philosophies.
The bigger the government, the smaller the individual.
They say they’re for limited government, but they’re pro-drug war, pro-immigration restriction
So libertarians are for open borders?
Good article. I do wonder if we are past the tipping point with the number of people who consider themselves entitled to the earnings of the so-called rich?
“But isn’t it wrong for people to suffer in a rich country?
“The number of people who will suffer is likely to be very small. Private charity ... will provide support for the vast majority who would be poor in the absence of some kind of support. When government does it, it creates an air of entitlement that leads to more demand for redistribution, till everyone becomes a ward of the state.”
I would consider myself a conservative with libertarian leanings.....the word “Constitutionalist” comes to mind...
John’s article articulates almost exactly my position on this, right down to the specifics, but does a better job of explaining it.
It is also why I went from Republican to libertarian several years ago.
You should be asking advocates of that system, ‘Why don’t you care about the poor?’”
When I was in college, I was wavering between libertarian and republican. I went to both meetings. The libertarians couldn’t even get it together enough to pool their funds and buy refreshments (although they all wanted them, they objected to putting someone in charge to make it happen.) Then they fell to griping about laws against pot and driving without seatbelts or helmets. That was pretty much it. I went with the republicans, although they do indeed support way too much government interference. I wish there was a viable party somewhere between these two.
I view these united states as a brick wall. Before the civil war it was a wall of brick with a thin layer of mortar to hold the bricks together. But it has become a wall of mortar with 50 bricks embedded in it somewhere, but you must chip off a thick layer of mortar to find them.
I want the mortar chipped off the whole wall so we can see the one our fathers built.
This brick wall needs a serious restoration. And a power wash to get rid of all that mildew wouldn’t hurt either.
The only thing government should be involved with is the maintenance of public order which includes the protection of the rights of the individual which, of course, includes the right to life.
By contrast, libertarians want government to leave people alone -- in both the economic and personal spheres. Leave us free to pursue our hopes and dreams, as long as we don't hurt anybody else.
Hey John, NEWSFLASH! Abortion kills a person.
Immigration also has profound "neighbor effects", so even in the absence of a welfare state reasonable limits on immigration make sense.
Nice read and so true. That is always the libtard’s argument: “It is inhumane to have the poor...”
Libertarians are Anarchists who bathe.
A classic example of the logical fallacy of "begging the question."
Libertarians are apparently supposed to be in favor of abortion because it doesn't "hurt anybody else."
Which is of course what the whole abortion debate is about. Pro-choice people believe abortion takes a human life, which is pretty inarguably hurting somebody else.
Which is why libertarians should be pro-life; it's not about government dictating what a person can do in their own life, it's about government protecting one person's life against harm by another person persuing their self-interest.
What I fear now is that we are no longer a moral people who possess the capacity for self government. What we once relished as freedom, we now fear as license. Without morality, we don't trust people to regulate what goes into their own bodies or to avoid other dangerous behaviors. Without respect for the property of others, we attract hordes of new looters who come not to work -- but to get in on the "free" benefits of plunder. As the Welfare State grows larger, we retreat from private charity and lose its rehabilitative effect. And finally, the temptation grows ever stronger to get whatever benefits we can take for ourselves before the system inevitably collapses.
It is this dark side of human nature which tyranny exploits, and which capitalism recognizes and limits. Unless we can once again exercise the self-control that "libertarian" philosophy and a free society require, we will require a dictator who will make us "behave" as he deems fit, and who will ultimately clothe and feed us.
I like Stossel, but it would be nice if he actually knew what conservatism is.
jw