There is a new meteor in the Texas sky. Ted Cruz, originally thought not to have a chance, has won the Republican nomination for the Senate. He started as an unknown, but picked up the support of Rand Paul and the Tea Party. A brilliant conservative, he has written 70 briefs to the Supreme Court. His known causes are, states rights, posting the Ten Commandments on public property, and having the pledge be said at public schools. Anyone from Texas can do the math.
Libertarianism: just looked it up. I guess there are many shades, as in all else.
Back in high school I fancied myself an Ayn Rand Libertarian. My clique of like-minded friends “believed in” no authority. I had my own complex of reasons – native intelligence, a sense of entitlement, the hubris of adolescence, and the emotional complications of a troubled family of origin. I believed if I were allowed to follow my inclinations without interference, good would come of it. I’d accept the consequences of my mistakes, but should be allowed freely enjoy my successes. That was a far as I thought.
Though confirmed a Presbyterian, I was an agnostic. It honestly never occurred to me that I was expected to “believe” the questions and answers from catechism class. I just wanted to ace the test. Pondering the existence of God or the nature of morality could wait until sometime later in life. The idea of government getting mixed up in defining “The Sacred” was preposterous. For instance: civil marriage is a business contract. The government’s only legitimate objection could be to a particular contract clearly intending to foment rebellion, engage in brigandage, or pursue other activity blatantly harmful to other members of society.
Later in life I met an ideologically pure Libertarian who explained that government had even less legitimate function than I’d imagined in my youth. Everything should be privatized. If you wanted police and fire protection you subscribed to the local police station and fire house. This fellow was extremely intelligent, as well as being a gifted artist and incomparable craftsman. He was a sweetheart to work for. He was also a meteoric eccentric, one of many I’ve run across over the years, and he was not particularly well-adapted to our society.
Personally, I had a conversion experience in college, and realized the naiveté of economic Libertarianism, a.k.a. Social Darwinism. So, while I still mistrust all hierarchical/authoritarian manipulation of my personal beliefs, I see one legitimate use of government. Unfettered free-market capitalism just doesn’t give everybody an equal shot at “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” History has repeatedly shown that wealthy and powerful elites pursue their own self-interest, often abandoning all moral scruples. We The People do need protection from such predatory entities, which are so much bigger than ourselves.
Check out the politicalcompass.org website. It’s perfectly normal for folks to be Libertarian when it comes to pure nuts and bolts economic policy (horizontal axis), but quite Authoritarian when it comes to other matters (vertical axis). Of course if the acquisition and exercise of Power is the supreme object, then everything trends together, further into the upper right-hand quadrant of the Political Compass.org graph. So the Social Darwinists are the natural bedfellows of the Evolution deniers after all. Or should I say, “…the unnatural bedfellows…..?”
Thank you Gaines. It’s a hard topic to define because the word “anarchist” has come to be confused with the word “nihilist”. The emphasis on individual freedom is a good thing, but we need to figure out how to do that, while also protecting the rights of others. “Mutual co-operation” was an essential part of classical anarchism which split into socialist and individualist forms. As Walt Lee said the other day nonaggression was an assumption of anarchism. But American Libertarianism has removed the co-operation part. I trust that they truly and honestly believe in non-aggression, but if you surrender responsibility to free markets you will move to war every time because war is the most profitable business. I think “naive” is the right word for American Libertarianism. And, of course, we should never forget that just because someone calls themself a “libertarian” does not mean they have removed mutual co-operation from the equation. The labels are all messed up.