IHateGovernment
Is this your homework?
I meant nothing personal and apologize if you took it that way. I'd have no problem with someone challenging the liberal perspective as long as it isn't personal. Libertarians, like every other political perspective, has variations and personal interpretations. I was speaking to what seems to be the core of libertarian ideology.
No offense taken. To tell the truth although I am a registered Libertarian I haven't associated much with the party faithful. My experience in the real world and onlnone is more connected to small 'l' libertarians. To be small 'l' is merely to embrace the ideas of non interference in personal liberties. Where everyone in that group draws lines is what distinguishes us and we all do as I've never met a full blown Anarcho- capitalist or Anarcho-socialist. The Libertarian party has its problems and is led by many kooks. Our most recent presidential candidate believed zip codes to be an over extension of federal power. To be frank it is an embarrasment although I'll take embarrassment over guilt (which is what you should feel if you voted for any of these war mongerers in Washington).
The fellow libertarians I have interacted with generally do have regard for the poor and elderly. Most believe that we should try to phase out government dependence on some programs gradually and only if the market shows it can fill in. I haven't talked to anyone who says let people starve in the streets to prove the merits of a social experiment. Only a couple want to immediately scrap everything and only one I know shows a callous attitude about it. Granted that when we judge things by our own personal experience our opinions are colored by our selective experience but it is the source of information we can trust most.
There is even prowar libertarian thought called by some as liberventionism, which would appear to negate that "force" thing entirely.
Yes I've heard of them. Althouth I personally find such a philosophy odious I could understand some of their reasoning and how it can be consistent with non initiaton of force principles. Few libertarians would say we should not have a police system and few would say that an officer shouldn't act if he sees a suspect draw a weapon and point it at another. This is the clear and present danger principle. This idea can be introduced into foreign policy and it is more likely to develop into a discussion of what constitutes a clear and present danger rather than core philosophies. However anyone applying such an argument to the Iraq war doesn't pass the laugh test.
With respect to you and Damocles, and any ither libertarian here, I will indeed be more careful and specfic about my comments about libertarians and make it specific to the ideology itself.
I was in a two hour debate on a talk-radio show a little more than a week ago with two libertarians from the Paul campaign and I've written a couple of articles that take a negative view of Paul and libertarian ideology. Now I'm getting press releases and notices from the Libertarian Party.
Point is, perhaps I'm still a bit wired from the libertarian overload. I mean no disrespect .. but I seriously disagree with the philosophy which I find WAY too axiomatic and disconnected from modern society.
Sorry
I understand. Hang around for a bit. Our site host is an excellent representative of libertarian thought and I'm sure he would be kind enough to say the same of me.
No offense taken. To tell the truth although I am a registered Libertarian I haven't associated much with the party faithful. My experience in the real world and onlnone is more connected to small 'l' libertarians. To be small 'l' is merely to embrace the ideas of non interference in personal liberties. Where everyone in that group draws lines is what distinguishes us and we all do as I've never met a full blown Anarcho- capitalist or Anarcho-socialist. The Libertarian party has its problems and is led by many kooks. Our most recent presidential candidate believed zip codes to be an over extension of federal power. To be frank it is an embarrasment although I'll take embarrassment over guilt (which is what you should feel if you voted for any of these war mongerers in Washington).
The fellow libertarians I have interacted with generally do have regard for the poor and elderly. Most believe that we should try to phase out government dependence on some programs gradually and only if the market shows it can fill in. I haven't talked to anyone who says let people starve in the streets to prove the merits of a social experiment. Only a couple want to immediately scrap everything and only one I know shows a callous attitude about it. Granted that when we judge things by our own personal experience our opinions are colored by our selective experience but it is the source of information we can trust most.
There is even prowar libertarian thought called by some as liberventionism, which would appear to negate that "force" thing entirely.
Yes I've heard of them. Althouth I personally find such a philosophy odious I could understand some of their reasoning and how it can be consistent with non initiaton of force principles. Few libertarians would say we should not have a police system and few would say that an officer shouldn't act if he sees a suspect draw a weapon and point it at another. This is the clear and present danger principle. This idea can be introduced into foreign policy and it is more likely to develop into a discussion of what constitutes a clear and present danger rather than core philosophies. However anyone applying such an argument to the Iraq war doesn't pass the laugh test.
With respect to you and Damocles, and any ither libertarian here, I will indeed be more careful and specfic about my comments about libertarians and make it specific to the ideology itself.
I was in a two hour debate on a talk-radio show a little more than a week ago with two libertarians from the Paul campaign and I've written a couple of articles that take a negative view of Paul and libertarian ideology. Now I'm getting press releases and notices from the Libertarian Party.
Point is, perhaps I'm still a bit wired from the libertarian overload. I mean no disrespect .. but I seriously disagree with the philosophy which I find WAY too axiomatic and disconnected from modern society.
Sorry
I understand. Hang around for a bit. Our site host is an excellent representative of libertarian thought and I'm sure he would be kind enough to say the same of me.