Issue 171 Libertarians Part 1 September 26, 2013

What is a libertarian? Many people really do not know what it means to be a libertarian at all. In fact some even confuse them for Liberals who are associated with the Democratic Party in the United States. In truth the name Liberal was stolen from today's libertarians by the progressives during the early 1900s so as to gain more support and thus become the Liberals of today. But who are these libertarians?

We want smaller government: Libertarians’ believe that government is inherently corrupt and has a penchant for becoming totalitarian. So any government expansion is looked at with close scrutiny. As libertarians see government as an ever encroaching blob that destroys people’s rights, we libertarians feel that government should stay within the confines of written law. Thus, when it comes to the federal government’s powers in the United States, it is believed that the government cannot do anything that is not expressly granted to it by the Constitution. Likewise the States and local governments should also be limited to their specific roles in society as a whole. So things like education stay at the community level, while things like war and peace stay at the federal level. From there it comes down to respecting the boundaries between the different levels of government in order to maintain balance and prevent government over reach.

Mind your own Business: One of the key features of libertarianism is the motto "mind your own business." It was in actuality the first motto of the United States. And libertarians in general follow its principles. No one should know what you’re doing and when except for the people you want to know. That means no government looking at your bank account. It means no State officials dictating the healthcare you want. If you want someone to know something then you will tell them or let people find out.

As long as it does not harm others: Another key feature of libertarians is that if your actions would intentionally (and in some cases unintentionally) harm others, then you will not be allowed to do that. So things like drugs and alcohol are allowed. Gun ownership is ok. All the way up to religious rites that involve sacrifices. The only time this stops is when an act that would harm another occurs like murder, rape, theft, assault, and the like. Morality does play a role, but your own morality is yours and belongs to you. You are allowed to raise your children to share that same morality, but don't expect others to entirely agree with you. Libertarians value a society of freedom and choice above all else. Just don't infringe upon the rights of another and then you will fit right in.

Free Markets: Libertarians want an open and free market with as few rules as possible. They want unrestricted trade with other nations. In addition, they want a society where anyone can start a business at any time with equal chances of success and failure. In other words, if the owner screws up then he loses his business. If the owner is successful, then the business prospers. No too big to fail garbage. It is all about people being able to succeed when and where they want to.

Conclusion: To achieve these ends libertarians stand for the basic rights that allow people to defend their liberties. Those rights are the freedom of speech and the press, the freedom of association, the freedom of religion, the freedom of expression, and the freedom to live a life of your own choosing. Some of the examples may look extreme and may portray libertarians as wanting a libertine society. However, libertarians want a society with the freedom of choice and free from tyrants (or potential tyrants as the case may be). You can see examples of libertarianism in places like Sweden and Switzerland with respect to economics and drug laws. Basically it’s about freedom to try, buy, succeed or fail. This is a libertarian in a nut shell and I am one of them.