Why You Shouldn't Listen To Libertarians

Libertarians are consistent in one aspect- they always think everyone else is wrong.

Many are currently crowing about how President Obama "answered" Reagan's question of "are you better off now than you were four years ago".

Of course that's not really what he said and he has carefully explained in interviews how things were much worse than anticipated. Matters not one speck to libertarians who use such oracular texts as pamphlets "proving" that FDR extended the Great Depression to reach conclusions on Obama's policies before he ever put his hand on the Bible.

Not because they overestimated the economic problems they country was facing, but because it was based on the false premise that government can create jobs by spending money we don’t have.

The only difference in the libertarian's view that Obama made things worse and the Republican's caterwaul that all he does is blame Bush is semantics.

The problem is they both ignore the fact that Obama is right.

See that chart up there? That's the revised statistics of the depth of the contraction during the Great Recession. It was a full percentage point worse than originally estimated. That means the economy lost $100 billion more than originally thought.

But what if the Libertarians are right? What if Obama is a misguided incompetent? Then we should look at alternatives right?

How about Romney? Nope. They hate him because of Massachusetts healthcare.

Surely Perry. Nope. One word - Gardisil.

Well how about tea party darling, Herman Cain? Oh, you didn't know he supported TARP?

So what will Libertarians do when election time rolls around? They'll vote for Gary Johnson who stands not a hoot's hell chance in winning. Then, what will they do in the general? They'll either stay home or vote for the candidate they select at the colorful hootenanny they call a convention.

And in January 2012 if, with their assistance at picking every scab the Republicans open on Obama, we elect a full bore lunatic, they will wipe their hands and say their conscience is clean because they didn't vote for either one.

Which is why until the day dawns where they give a whit about reality, we shouldn't give a whit about what libertarians think.

That Side Of The River

As a blogger, the news that Orly Taitz, the birther queen, has joined the legal fight to challenge this week's healthcare legislation causes me to rub my hands in glee. As a thinking human being, it strains my eye muscles as they roll uncontrollably.

I refer to one of my political priniciples as "the side of the river". It states, "no matter how much you fundamentally agree with an issue, sometimes you have to look around and see who's standing on your side of the river". There is nuance, however. Each side of the river always has resident kooks. One must determine when the number of kooks begins to override the comfort of ideological purity.

Even though I fundamentally oppose to the healthcare legislation (primarily due to the individual mandates), I think it's starting to clarify which shore of this political river is becoming the home of the wildest raving lunatics.

Git The Stimulus Tar And Feathers!

Fresh off their "victory" in NY-23 the Club For Growth is venturing down to Florida.

Their problem with centrist Charlie Crist? He was fer the stimulus. Well, you see that just won't do, cuz any good libertarian was agin the stimulus.

Charlie's sin gives these "conservative" leaders no choice but to tacitly endorse "liberty" loving lovable theocrat Marco Rubio.

Remember this lesson well, chilluns. When it comes to the gummint spending money, you must be ideologically pure. Even if it means you just git all plain squishy on things like personal freedom, science and all those other "side issues".

Money matters. The rest of the things government does to screw us? Not so much.

Video via Jason Pye

It Begins

If you didn't follow one of the links in my previous post, I encourage you to follow this one to the absurd essay at SWGA Politics comparing the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans to the effects of Hurricane Iniki on the set of Jurassic Park.

These people were either so delusional or so beaten down by their own government that they thought it was the government’s job to save them! Rather than taking action on their own to get themselves OUT of the situation they found themselves in, they sat there and waited to be “rescued” by the government!

Usually, SWGA Politics has fine content - particularly when reporting about Albany local politics. However, it is not immune from occasional forays into true madness. This is one of those times.

The channel dredging begins.

Plugging The Libertarians

Lately, I've been giving them a hard time, so it is time to balance the cosmic equation.

The LP in the ATL has a new website.

First impression is it's pretty spunky. I especially like the use of feeds.

Check 'em out.

A Couple Of Oldies But Goodies

I can be harsh with my written word. I don't apologize for this vanity. If I did, my mentor from beyond the grave would surely rise up to threaten me with grievous bodily harm

But I've always believed in keeping the conversation going.

My recent screed about swgalibertarian's behavior and Daniel N. Adams response cause me to reflect on some of my early ramblings about libertarianism.

So, here they are back from the dead for your perusal.

The Sensible Libertarian

The Outsiders

Although I don't consider myself truly a libertarian anymore, with the recent disaffection of many Republicans, there are many interesting goings on in the little party that could. Feel free to navel gaze at your pleasure.

Why I'm Not A Liberal

Weed is my favorite theoretical example for defining the differences between modern conservatives and modern liberals.

Conservatives says weed is bad therefore we must ban it. Liberals says weed is no worse than alcohol so we should legalize it - but then tax the bejeezus out of it.

I think you can see the parallels to my weed hypothetical and these comments by Dustin at UGA Liberal.

I must agree with them that, in this point of time in democracy, access to the information on the internet is vital to everyone. It should be a basic human right...That is not to say that it should not be regulated.

I hope this is a case of sarcasm not translating well over the internet, but I suspect it's not.

Gonna Pick A Fight

Usually when I pick a fight with libertarians, it centers on a single bone of contention - they are willing to tear the country apart over the merest slight against economic freedom, but get all squishy on issues of civil liberty.

But there's another topic where they at times stray past my patience - when they co-opt the elephant's stalking horse of the media is the root of all evil.

As long as you repeat the words of others, it doesn't matter how often you insist you are having a different conversation..

Well Said

Our friend Jason quoted in the AJC.

Jason Pye of Covington, the legislative director for the Georgia Libertarian Party, had mixed emotions about the rally. He and his fellow Libertarians have long supported the ideals exhorted Wednesday: less government, free markets and a Darwinian-approach to private business...Many of those speaking, he said, haven’t always protected those ideals...“I’m happy people are getting together,” he said. “But the movement has been co-opted by Republicans who are trying to regain their identity and want to forget George W. Bush existed. Libertarians aren’t forgetting.”

It always good to remember there are those who call themselves Libertarians because Republican just doesn't sound as cool.

Confessions Of A Taxman

Why does a libertarian become a tax collector? Because even libertarians need a paycheck. How does a libertarian act as a tax collector? With the belief that tax enforcement is not about punishment but correcting mistakes.

In the days when I still referred to myself as a libertarian instead of an independent, for two years I was employed by the Georgia Department of Labor as a Field Representative (officially an Unemployment Insurance Tax Auditor). I did not miss the irony.

One duty was the collection of the Unemployment Insurance tax. Unlike other taxmen with whom you may be familiar, I did not go after individuals - I went after employers. Employers paid the tax quarterly with the amount based on their total payroll. When they became delinquent, a file came to my desk and I devised the best strategy to obtain the money.

To the frustration of my supervisor, I demurred in the use of the most devastating tools in my arsenal. Restraint and diplomacy became my style. Others who had worked the trade for years shook their heads in disbelief.

I have many war stories from these years, some funny, some sad, but the two I always remember were the strip club and the daycare center.

My assigned territory was a mottled blob of strangeness. It stretched from the strip joints and lingerie modeling establishments on Cheshire Bridge through the financial heart of Buckhead all the way to the doctor's offices around Northside Hospital. It was not unusual for a single trip to take me from a liquor store to a stockbroker's office.

Despite what one might think, the adult establishments were hardly a problem. Other than the Gold Club (the Federales got them before I ever got close), for months I never saw a file on the myriad houses of nudity. Then, one appeared. It was a small bill. They only missed one filing but curiousity (and perhaps more puerile interest) drove me to investigate.

There are few things weirder than a strip club at 2:00 in the afternoon on a weekday. The parking lot was full of trucks and sedans. I was entering the world of the landscapers and salesmen - men who forsake the heat of the day for a dark place covered in booze and skin.

A cocktail waitress approached me and asked if I needed anything. A manager I replied. The man in charge appeared quickly and I showed him the bill. He ushered me to his office and relayed a familiar story.

The club had changed accountants and in the confusion the quarterly filing was misssed. I responded, "It happens all the time. I figured it was something like that since you guys are never a problem".

He agreed, opened the big business checkbook and snapped out the full amount.

As he handed me the check, he said, "It'll never happen again."

I replied, "I bet".

Not too far from the strip joint, a young couple opened a daycare center.

They left high paying engineering jobs because they wanted something for themselves and they loved children.

When their file crossed my desk, my supervisor pointed out that it appeared to be classic case of what he called a "mercy killing". He believed some people did not have what it takes to run a business and the best action we could take was to end the misery. He had a point. They were a new business and those always faced the most danger. They were also horribly behind and experience told me the chances of payment were slim.

It was within my power to begin the process which would result in their closure, but I looked at my supervisor and said, "let me go check them out".

The daycare was in an old building next to an even older apartment complex, but it had a fresh coat of bright yellow paint and flower decals on the door. The owners were not much older than me and it was apparent they were over their heads. When they first opened, they knew a lot about kids but not much about running a business. Of course they were aware of the outstanding taxes - they had dutifully filed every quarter, they just didn't pay. The wife told of the dread they both felt about the day the taxman came and now he was here.

We sat and I heard the familiar story of the sacrifices made, the hard lessons learned and the tiny successes. Some tears were shed but their eyes glinted with the belief they had turned the corner and could still realize their dream. But they had no idea how they would deal with this awful piece of paper I was holding in my hand.

I looked around - noted the clean but obviously second hand furnishings, the gaggle of children playing in the next room and the mother arriving to take her daughter home. I then reached into my bag and pulled out a repayment agreement. We discussed how much they could pay without crippling the business, how long it would take and how I would personally come each month to pick up the check. I warned them that my supervisor's approval was required but I believed I could convince him.

The next day, he rolled his eyes and signed the agreement.

Every month, for one year, I stopped by the daycare and picked up a check. On the last day, they met me at the doors with smiles on their faces, check in hand. They demanded I follow them to the office to see the photocopy they made of their final payment.

In two years as a taxman, I only put one business out of operation and filed less than two dozen liens, yet I was in the top three collectors every quarter.

The strip club and the daycare center and countless others taught me there is a reason tax matters are dealt with in a civil rather than a criminal manner. Most people who get into trouble with the taxman do so through carelessness, biting off more than they can chew or just flat out Murphy's Law. It is the rare bird who intentionally tries to get away with being a cheat.

In this season of much thunder about taxes, who pays them, who doesn't and what should be done about it, saying so and so is a bad person and should be punished is an easy story to sell to a cynical public. But as politicians proudly thump their chests and demand a reckoning, we should remember that behind their simplistic descriptions of ne'er-do-wells may be a daycare center or even a strip club or maybe your neighbor or maybe even you.

The bloodlust and call for scalps are seductive, but we all face the taxman eventually and all should hope their own story is seen for what it is and not just a politician's punchline.

What Is Goin' On: Pye On The Election

Whoooooooooo! This is a fun one. Wilson and Jason light up the airwaves with some frank talk about wages, taxes and their views of what's fair.

It's a good one!

Listen here.

More Hate

Habitat for Humanity is trying something new.

The Atlanta-based nonprofit, which builds homes for people in need, is expected to announce Thursday the launch of a microloan program in partnership with the Maryland-based Calvert Foundation. It will allowindividuals to invest in — rather than simply donate to — Habitat's philanthropic mission.

We have a private foundation which aids the working poor without government assistance and it is now trying an innovation which has been so successful in other countries it won a guy the Nobel Peace Prize.

It is so dead in the black of libertarian philosophy it makes one weep.

You would think "so called conservatives" would also praise such success with private rather than government intervention. And surely some do.

But not all.

Wonderful. Here’s more on the plan. This program really does a good job keeping people living in economically un-viable areas. Just the ticket for feel good liberals.

Remember the rules chickens: Government trying to help anyone is doomed to failure because it is incompetent and evil. Non-governmental agencies trying help someone is still doomed because it will be run by lie-bur-als and they are inherently idiots.

Libertarian Convention Coverage

Most don't know Denver is the host of two political conventions.

Last week, our good friend Jason Pye attended the Libertarian Party National Convention. Check his extensive coverage of the all things political and bizarre.

Democratic Playbook: Healthcare

An occasional series by one guy who thinks he might know how the Democrats can win back Georgia.

Much hoo-hah lately over the President's veto of S-CHIP funding. Especially here in Georgia where conservative Democrat Jim Marshall voted against funding and looks like he will not switch to override the veto.

Short and sweet entry in the playbook.

If you want to convince a fiscal conservative the government should be involved in providing healthcare, do not talk to me about it being any sort of right. Talk to me about how we already have government healthcare, but do it badly, i.e. using emergency rooms as primary providers, but there is a way to make it work. I might put ideology aside and begin listening.

Georgia The Overgovernmented

Can someone please explain to me why a city needs permission from the legislature to set up a parks department?

House Bill 524:

A BILL to be entitled an Act to create the City of Johns Creek Parks and Recreation Authority; to authorize such authority to acquire, construct, equip, maintain, and operate or contract for services to provide athletic and recreational centers, facilities, and areas, including, but not limited to, playgrounds, parks, hiking, camping, and picnicking areas and facilities, swimming and wading pools, lakes, tennis courts, athletic fields and courts, clubhouses, gymnasiums, auditoriums, youth centers, senior citizen centers, stadiums, performing arts centers, cultural centers, related buildings, golf courses, and the usual and convenient facilities appertaining to such undertakings and extensions and improvements of such facilities; to acquire parking facilities and parking areas in connection therewith; to provide that bonds be validated as authorized by Article 3 of Chapter 82 of Title 36 of the O.C.G.A., the “Revenue Bond Law”; to provide for construction; to provide for personnel; to provide for conveyance of property upon dissolution; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

The amount of top down regulation in this state is insane. We have a constitution so contorted it has to be amended to change how we ticket speeders. We have 159 counties including metro counties so large it is argued services cannot be provided adequately and counties with less than 5,000 residents and unincorporated county seats.

We like to pretend we are about independence and individuality in these parts when the reality is small government entities can't pass gas without asking permission of the legislature.

We are suffocating under the oppresive weight. It is past time for radical surgery on the distended body of our bureaucracy before our own governmental gluttony chokes away the life.

The Anti-Libertarian President

Remember how I was wondering what the hell was happening with my Netflix envelopes? Maybe I now know.

The President asserted his new authority when he signed a postal reform bill into law on Dec. 20. Bush then issued a "signing statement" that declared his right to open people's mail under emergency conditions.

My question is to all those "libertarians" who continue to support this president. Exactly how far will go to compromise your ideological soul before finally admitting President Bush is possibly the most anti-libertarian President in history? At least I will still be able to chuckle when someone says, "I'm a libertarian but I voted for Bush and would again".

The Outsiders

Ever since Kos posted his screed on Libertarian-Democrats an idea has been burbling beneath the surface of the political ocean. Why do the Republicans seem to have a lock hold on the libertarian vote? Placed side by side, libertarians disagree with Republican positions at least as much as Democrat positions. In some opinions, mine included, more so.

Previously, I wrote that libertarians fall into three camps. Time has caused a modification. Although I stand by my original thoughts on an ideological level, I believe in real world politics Libertarians fall in to two categories: The Financials and The Socials. Every libertarian believes in the core philosophy of smaller government in all areas is beneficial. The only difference in the two camps is focus.

The Financials focus on tax cuts, reducing regulations and free market at all levels of life. They are for privatizing social security, against any form of government health care, against the minimum wage and usually are flat taxers although there is a new breed of fair taxers. These philosophies line up perfectly with not only libertarain ideology but the public face of the Republican Party. Compared to some of the social positions of libertarianism, it's an easy sell.

Of course we all now know the Republicans were selling snake oil on financial restraint and their complete surrender to the social nannies is about as far from the libertarian ideal as you can get. The financials woke up one day and realized their sacrifice of the social to further the financial eventually left them with neither. In November, these libertarians made their displeasure known at the ballot box.

For years, as if a single hemisphere of the brain is completely absorbed, other than gun control, the Financials chose to downplay or completely ignore social libertarianism. However, they are not the only ones with brains half-sparking.

The Socials focus on pro-choice, privacy rights, and drugs. They tend to accept some government interference in business but are usually absolutists when "the man" tries to interfere with individual lives. Even to the point of pinning what many call the albatross of the libertarian party around their necks; legalization of all drugs.

Strangely, the Socials rarely associate with the Democrats the way the Financials aligned in the past with the Republicans. Although they agree with progressives on practically every social issue, gun control once again being the notable exception, the Socials perceive the Democrat agenda to be just intrusive as the Republican. For every nodding of the head on sodomy laws there would be an equal shaking of the head on every spawning of a new tax or social program. However, somewhat like the Financials, Socials suppress their pro-business instincts when individual rights are on the line. A Social might vote for an ardent supporter of the Fourth Amendment even if they know the candidate wants to require every business in America to provide workers with daycare, paid vacation and lollipops on mandatory breaks.

The issues of course go much deeper and can never be so easily distilled. I would never support lollipops for everyone and few Financials would stomach an absolute ban on abortion. Like any other polticial movement libertarians have many different shades and most have value. In the real world, a good example of a Financial would be Jason Pye. I present myself as an example of a Social.

Unlike outsiders in the Republican and Democrat parties for the last 30 years, we both are accepted in the ranks of Libertarians. There is room for all and we accept that our differences are not disloyalty but rather continue to advance the discussion.

Given the results of November, the voters are tired of talkers who do not listen. Libertarian electoral gains both locally and nationally indicate the masses are willing to listen to the outsiders. Even the ones with some "wacky ideas. Possibly because at least the outsiders listen back.

UDPATE: An emailer pointed out that the actions of the libertarian party are not always ones of acceptance and tolerance. It's a fair point, but I would note that if you look at any political movement close enough, you will find warts. But the warts of the Libertarians are rough spots compared to the explosive buboes of the parties in power.

UPDATE II: I've had some really good feedback on this post and I appreciate it. From another perspective, a North Georgia Democrat offers the point of view when a libertarian official converts to the Republicans for percived political advantage.

Still Believe The Market Doesn't Work?

Well, it's only one example but it's a good one.

Fox has cancelled the O.J. Simpson interview.

Good for them. A great example of what civil libertarians have been advocating for years. If the people don't want it, the knuckleheads won't produce it. Even the knuckleheads at Fox.

So now about the F.C.C.....

Fore!

The federal government is now in the business of bailing out country clubs.

Yet when a businessman wanted to revive the struggling club, the U.S. Department f Agriculture, through its Rural Development branch, agreed to guarantee 90 percent of his $6 million loan.

Guess what. It didn't work and taxpayers shelled out almost $2 million.

Hey. We're just the gallery, paying to watch bloated government agencies duck hook an endless supply of balls at our heads. Will we ever follow common sense and get out of the way?

h/t: Peach Pundit

Nanny State Gone Wild

Oh for God's sake. From email.

Now the government is targeting unmarried adults up to age 29 as part of its abstinence-only programs, which include millions of dollars in federal money that will be available to the states under revised federal grant guidelines for 2007. ~USA Today

Next time somebody asks me where I would start with spending cuts? I've got a quick easy answer.