A Look At The Libertarians

With the major political parties in such turmoil this election year, my discussion group decided to take a look at the Libertarian Party.  We'd all heard about libertarians, thought we knew something about them, and so decided to look a  little deeper.  I went to their web site, pulled up their platform statement, and learned all about their principles.  Here they are for you.  Decide for yourself whether you like this approach to government or not.

Libertarians believe that all individuals are soverign over their own lives and no one is forced to sacrifice his or her values for the benefit of others.  Respect for individual rights is the essential precondition for a free and prosperous world.  Force and fraud must be banished from human relationships.  All individuals have the right to live in whatever manner they choose, so long as they do not forcibly interfere with the equal right of others to live how they choose.  Below are just some examples of how libertarian thinking defines personal liberty, economic liberty and national defense.

Individuals own their bodies and have rights over them that other individuals may not violate.  They believe that government should be kept out of the matter of abortion, leaving the question to each person for their conscientious consideration.  Libertarians support full freedom of expression and oppose government censorship.  They believe the only legitimate use of force is in defense of individual rights- life, liberty and justly acquired property-against aggression.  Libertarians favor free market trading and free market banking, with unrestricted competition with unrestricted competition on.  As for the labor market, they believe bargaining should be free of government interference.  Regarding education, Libertarians would restore authority to parents to determine the education of their children.  They feel retirement planning is the responsibility of the individual, not the government.  They would get rid of Social Security.  Libertarians would support the maintenance of a small army.  This would not be a priority over maintaining the civil liberties of our citizens.  Our foreign policy should see peace.

Many Libertarian ideas sound good to me, but when you examine them a little deeper, it is hard to figure out how a country of 350 million people could run efficiently without taxes, social security, traditional schools, voluntary health care, and no help for elderly.  Go to their web page if you find this interesting, as I did.