MetaFilter posts tagged with Libertarianism

Grover, Grover, gimme your ice cream.

OmieWise — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 14:55:12 -0800

"What is so striking, and serves as the clearest mark of Rand’s lasting influence, is the language of moral absolutism applied by the right to these questions. Conservatives define the see-sawing of the federal tax-and-transfer system between slightly redistributive and very slightly redistributive as a culture war over capitalism, or a final battle to save the free enterprise system from the hoard of free-riders." John Chait on the debt modern conservatism owes to Ayn Rand. "(The anti-government activist Grover Norquist has told a similar story from childhood, in which his father would steal bites of his ice cream cone, labelling each bite "sales tax" or "income tax." The psychological link between a certain form of childhood deprivation and extreme libertarianism awaits serious study.)"

All the King's Men

Marisa Stole the Precious Thing — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 16:12:36 -0800

Monarchy vs. Democracy: "Was the change from monarchy to democracy a step backwards? In practical terms, there is no question: democracy has had tremendously bad effects compared to monarchy." More monarchist libertarianism: While some defend monarchy in its current form, others try and re-invent monarchism in their own image. Further reference (and no strangers to the blue): Hans-Herman Hoppe, probably the most-cited source for monarchist libertarianism, is a Distinguished Fellow with the Ludwig von Mises Institute. The Introduction to his book Democracy: The God That Failed can be read on their site. Hoppe is a controversial figure, but his fans do extend outside of Europe.

Once Rapture starts leaking, the old girl's never gonna stop.

The Whelk — Sun, 31 May 2009 11:30:38 -0800

The Seasteading Institute (previously) is the brain-child of former Google engineer Patri Friedman , and seeks to set up independent governments in international waters. In April 2009, the institute received $500,000 of seed funding from PayPal founder Peter Thiel. After reading it's revised manifesto, Brad Reed (of Sadly, No) remains unimpressed. "The seasteaders briefly address the threat of piracy by explaining that "most pirate attacks are either very small-scale, preying on unarmed ships, or very large-scale, with organized groups stealing entire cargo ships. A seastead will be too tough for small pirates and not financially worthwhile for big ones." Really! An entire sea platform filled with highly profitable illegal drugs would not be financially worthwhile for pirates to attack! Good luck with that."

China Miéville says libertarianism's all at sea

Jakey — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 07:41:55 -0800

Remember the Freedom Ship? (Previously). Well, it's still no nearer reality. China Miéville reckons it's due to the fact that it's a perfect example of the libertarian fantasy. Some libertarians take issue with his portrayal of the movement. Meanwhile the serious seasteaders think he must be talking about someone else. Maybe one of these guys?

Just Say No .. to John Stuart Mill

daksya — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 08:23:01 -0800

"An open society must be prepared to listen to those who offer a critique of its conventional wisdom—and our conventional wisdom about drugs and addiction should be no exception."

Live Free or Die?

fourcheesemac — Sun, 21 Jan 2007 07:28:12 -0800

The Tax Man Cometh:

"They believe, in the face of all evidence to the contrary, that their citizen's understanding of the written law should, and in some Platonic sense does, trump the realities of dealing with the government. This makes them uniquely American rebels--more true, they maintain, to the nation's core values than those of us who follow the pragmatic advice . . . "You mess with that shit, you are going to jail."

Brian Doherty analyzes the tax resistance movement (from 2004). Meanwhile, another ugly confrontation is brewing in New Hampshire, and violence is in the air. Mr. Brown, of course, has his views.

Beautiful liberty.

By The Grace of God — Mon, 28 Aug 2006 11:33:16 -0800

The Philosophy of Liberty. Briefly cited here, this simple yet powerful Flash animation is one of the most elegant, expressive, and dramatic political statements I have ever seen.

Loompanics R.I.P.

jason's_planet — Fri, 30 Jun 2006 14:59:15 -0800

America's craziest bookstore has gone out of business. Loompanics, a libertarian publisher in Washington State, has gone out of business. Some blame the changed political climate after 9/11. Others blame Amazon.com and the big bookstore chains. No matter what the cause might be, I will miss them. What will I do if I decide I want to try to cook some crank? And if that doesn't succeed in paying the bills, what if I need to go dumpster diving for my dinner? And if get truly desperate, what if I decide to rip off a drug dealer instead? I'm glad that Amok is still with us.

Monbiot rants

wilful — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 22:29:28 -0800

"They call themselves libertarians; I think they're antisocial bastards". George Monbiot goes on a considered rant against individualistic road users and groups.

LNSGP

knapah — Fri, 01 Aug 2003 16:02:30 -0800

The Nazis are back and this time they're green! I can't seem to tell if it's real or not... which is kind of worrying.[Via memepool]

Working against evolution?

111 — Fri, 07 Feb 2003 11:16:51 -0800

In an article called "The Sociobiological Conceit", Gene Callahan says darwinism is logically flawed and inherently self-contradictory: "if moral ideas are simply an 'illusion' fostered on us by our genes then so are all of our other ideas – including the ideas of sociobiology!". Callahan, fyi, belongs to the ultra-libertarian circles of the Mises Institute and LewRockwell. Would any of the evolutionists among us care to politely refute him?

BirdD0g — Wed, 16 Oct 2002 06:31:28 -0800

The Free State Project is a plan in which 20,000 or more liberty-oriented people will move to a single state of the U.S. to secure there a free society. We will accomplish this by first reforming state law, opting out of federal mandates, and finally negotiating directly with the federal government for appropriate political autonomy. We will be a community of freedom-loving individuals and families, and create a shining example of liberty for the rest of the nation and the world.

thirteen — Wed, 28 Feb 2001 12:50:50 -0800

Do you have too much Freedom?
Might be interesting to all except for the ideology sales pitch at the end. Here is where the warning that it is a Harry Browne/Libertarian penned article goes. George Bush is a Communitarian?

tdecius — Sat, 06 Nov 1999 10:41:25 -0800

Critiques Of Libertarianism is a good read. The kind of concerns raised on this light-hearted site is what keeps me off of the Libertarian party.