“As Libertarians, we seek a world of liberty; a world in which all individuals are sovereign over their own lives and no one is forced to sacrifice his or her values for the benefit of others.”
~from the Preamble to the Libertarian Party Platform
Having grown up in Texas, most of my lifelong friends are extreme conservatives who are members of the Tea Party, Libertarians, or both. The main appeal of the Libertarian party to those involved seems to be its principles of autonomy and personal choice – essentially their belief in limited government, that personal freedoms trump governmental interests.
My Libertarian friends oppose existing political and economic systems, laissez-faire capitalism and advocate strong private property rights.
The problem is that many most of my Libertarian friends have little in common with the Libertarian party except for their core believe in limited government. We often hear talk of “contempt prior to investigation,” but in this instance we are observing “membership prior to investigation.”
Here are 4 reasons most libertarians are either lying or confused, or why many most – if not all – of my Libertarian friends could, would and should never be actual members of the Libertarian Party. And bear in mind, these are taken directly from the official Libertarian Party Platform; these items are not my opinion.
1. Libertarians Support Gay Marriage
1.4 Personal Relationships
Sexual orientation, preference, gender, or gender identity should have no impact on the government’s treatment of individuals, such as in current marriage, child custody, adoption, immigration or military service laws. Government does not have the authority to define, license or restrict personal relationships. Consenting adults should be free to choose their own sexual practices and personal relationships.
2. Libertarians are Pro-Choice
I almost wrote that they are Pro-Abortion as most of my Libertarian friends do not, or cannot, distinguish the difference between being pro-choice and pro-abortion.
1.5 Abortion
Recognizing that abortion is a sensitive issue and that people can hold good-faith views on all sides, we believe that government should be kept out of the matter, leaving the question to each person for their conscientious consideration.
3. Libertarians Believe in Climate Change
2.2 Environment
We support a clean and healthy environment and sensible use of our natural resources. Private landowners and conservation groups have a vested interest in maintaining natural resources. Pollution and misuse of resources cause damage to our ecosystem. Governments, unlike private businesses, are unaccountable for such damage done to our environment and have a terrible track record when it comes to environmental protection. Protecting the environment requires a clear definition and enforcement of individual rights in resources like land, water, air, and wildlife. Free markets and property rights stimulate the technological innovations and behavioral changes required to protect our environment and ecosystems. We realize that our planet’s climate is constantly changing, but environmental advocates and social pressure are the most effective means of changing public behavior. [emphasis added]
4. Libertarians Support Open Borders and Free Trade
It is important to note two things here:
- First, they specifically cite those crossing borders to “escape from tyranny.” Doesn’t that apply to children from Latin America?
- Second, the only exclusion to the unrestrained ability to cross borders are foreign nationals posing “a credible threat;” otherwise they do not support any border restrictions to include persons, money and corporate interests.
3.4 Free Trade and Migration
We support the removal of governmental impediments to free trade. Political freedom and escape from tyranny demand that individuals not be unreasonably constrained by government in the crossing of political boundaries. Economic freedom demands the unrestricted movement of human as well as financial capital across national borders. However, we support control over the entry into our country of foreign nationals who pose a credible threat to security, health or property.
BRIEF REBUTTAL TO ANTICIPATED ATTACKS
In anticipating blow-back from my Libertarian friends, I imagine the loudest rebuttal to be something along this line:
“No one agrees with every portion of their party’s platform….”
And while that may be true, we are not talking about insignificant issues here, people. In my opinion there are only 6 key political issues that divide most Americans:
- Gay Marriage
- Abortion
- Climate Change
- Immigration
- Gun Control / 2nd Amendment
- National Healthcare
In this instance, the stated ideological/political beliefs of my Libertarian friends are in direct conflict with the party’s platform on 4 out of 6 of those issues.
Just saying…
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