Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Private Property Initiates Force

The cornerstone of radical libertarian thinking is the idea that private property does not initiate force. Consequently, the radical libertarian believes that he or she can simultaneously believe in private property while opposing the initiation of force. But since private property does in fact initiate force, radical libertarianism must either be rejected or at least be grounded on some other principle.

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Democracy is the Better Way to Go

The events of the Twentieth Century taught humankind a valuable lesson: that one-party rule leads to torture and mass killing. Assuming that torture and mass killing are things to be avoided, then libertarians must reject the view espoused by many LP members that the Constitution of 1787 did not set up a democracy, but rather what amounts to a dictatorship of one party, a party that could appropriately be called the White Male Landowner Party. The founders may have sincerely felt that factionalism was to be avoided, but they naively failed to realize that they themselves constituted a faction, and the prohibition of competing factions in the interest of living in harmonious, unitary bliss is something that humankind has found to be far worse than multi-party democracy.

Are Americans Innocent Victims?

Libertarian Party members tend to believe that once upon a time, Americans were living in libertarian bliss, but then some evil statists seized power and imposed Big Government. This occurred against the will of Americans; hence they are not to blame for this. Consequently, Americans deserve a huge tax cut, especially an income tax cut. But is this belief true? If Big Government exists because Americans support this idea and vote for it, then do they really deserve a tax cut? If a person murders someone, do they deserve to be punished or rewarded? If Americans vote to decrease the size of government, then, and only then, do they deserve a tax cut.