How a "knucklehead" became Vice Chair of the Libertarian Party of Nevada

     In response to Scott Kaufman's piece, "Chairman claims Nevada Libertarian Party 'infested with idiots'" (http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/11/24/chairman-claims-nevada-libertarian-party-infested-with-idiots/).  Normally I would never self-identify as a "knucklehead"; however recently the former Chair of the Libertarian Party of Nevada (LPN) has decided to take a break from leadership because, as he puts it, "the LPN is infested with idiots and knuckleheads".  I would now like to take a little time to explain how this came to be.
     It was 2011, I was so fed up with the political stories in the news that I decided to get involved again in the Libertarian Party.  I had been a member in California, but since moving here in 2006 I hadn't really heard anything about a state party.  I googled LPN, found a website and eventually got a hold of Brett Pojunis.  He was enthusiastic and wanted to meet, and he said there was a convention coming up, would I like to get involved.  I said sure, and eventually got together with a few of the members on the excom.  We all had a few things in common...go figure.  We were clean cut...for the most part.  We were conservative on fiscal issues...rabidly so.  I was introduced to Wayne Allyn Root's book and read some of it to familiarize myself with whom I assumed was a big player in the party (he was VP candidate on the 2008 ticket).  First thing I learned from the book was that Wayne was the son of a butcher...SO WAS I!  We must have so many things in common...I thought.  I was asked to be the chair of the convention after a few weeks...maybe a couple months?  I prepared a speech...and then I had to stand up, welcome everyone...and deliver it.
     For weeks, I had been excited and at the same time warned about some bad seeds in the party.  These were the freaks and "kooks" that were anarchist bombthrowing rabble-rousers...an embarrassment to the party.  I just hoped they wouldn't throw anything at me, I had on my good suit.  I stood up on the dais, and quoted Bastiat's "The Law".  I was thanked and congratulated by Wayne, Brett and Joe...as well as a few members of the party that I was supposed to be wary of.  How is this possible...there is no way these heathens had read Bastiat.  I was the enemy to them, they hated our faction...why were some being nice?  Something was afoot.  I was going to find out what.
    I went to the table in question...bristling with contempt and evil...and introduced myself to a petite dark haired woman with eyes that could see through me...I was convinced she was some kind of witch or worse...a mind reader.  I shook her hand, and said "I'm Jason."  Then, it happened.  She answered back "I'm Debra, I liked your speech."  I knew it...wait...what?  "Thank you, I just got involved in the party." was my response...to which she told me she has been involved for many years.  Eventually we talked about Reiki...an art of healing using the human body as a conduit for energy and life.  Not exactly suit and tie activities.  Something didn't add up...we had things in common, she was polite and friendly...I felt at ease somehow.  I went around the table, and met some of the others...including what Joe warned me, was the devil himself.  I introduced myself to David Colborne, who was in a suit and tie (probably under cover) and we actually excused ourselves from Joes 4 hour speech and spoke in the hall.  He was well spoken, intelligent and was a former member of the excom until Joe Silvestri's faction disaffiliated all the counties.  I asked where the hell all these anarchist bomb throwers were that Silvestri had told me about, and with a wry smile, he shrugged his shoulders and said...we have all been where you are.  Now I'm confused...we all seem to be Libertarians, and getting along.  Where are the people I was told are bad for the party?
     After break, we sat back down and got to listen to Wayne Allyn Root speak.  He addressed the "devil's table" and continued to go on about how best to get libertarians elected.  He mentioned that talking about legalizing drugs was not popular, nor would it bring in votes from the GOP.  He spoke about his Libertarian pedigree coming from his desire to legalize online poker.  He said that we should be socially tolerant, but run on a platform that could sway Republicans to vote for us.  Gay rights is fine...but it doesn't win you votes in red districts...I think I found out who was bad for the party...he was bucking for a nomination to run for President or Senate...and he was Joe's right hand...Oh my god...I'm on the wrong side.  Within a few months, Romney was nominated, and Wayne said, "It's got to be Romney" at a Gary Johnson function.  Wayne finally left the party and went back to the GOP...and Brett and I had our "cause". 
     In January of this year, I asked my girlfriend to call and email Joe Silvestri to get info about signing up for the party.  She wanted to join, probably because she wanted to support me...but nonetheless...she got a phone call a few days later, with a message to call him back.  This was the Chair of the LPN taking his time doing something more important than outreach and helping people become members?  I knew what had to be done.  Brett Pojunis had been feeling the same as me about Wayne, Joe and the way this party had been going...we were going to run for the excom and change things.  I knew we could speak to our suit and tie crowd...and educate them on the ills of oppressive social policies, but also, we could speak to people who were more passionate than former GOPers...had first hand knowledge of police brutality and bigotry...something a pair of tall, white cleancut men in suits couldn't really relate to.  Well, I don't wear ties anymore, and I now sport a bushy beard...I was told I look a lot more "Libertarian" now...sheesh...I am so much more comfortable too...and yes, now I have been put in handcuffs and thrown up against a cop car for having a CCW and Libertarian bumper sticker.  I'm so proud.
     In two years under Joe Silvestri's reign, I have never seen meeting minutes posted.  I have never read a treasurer report.   I have seen no outreach...sure, a pub night here and there...a meetup page talking about a hike...but what about action?  During the past 9 months, Brett Pojunis has had two people calling all registered Libertarians in the state, notifying them of the convention, and asking if they want to join the party.  Many were just getting their first phone call from the party...and it wasn't even from the party...it was from Brett...on his dime.  All the while, Brett has been traveling and doing work as a rep for the Libertarian National Party.  After all these months, all this work, and all this time...I have only seen three things from Joe Silvestri...complaints about Brett, allegations about fraud, and crying about how his party is in disarray.   Joe, you have run out of excuses, you have run out of people willing to serve on your excom, you have run out of time...but make no mistake...you have been RUN out of office.  You can call us idiots, you can call us knuckleheads...but make no mistake about this...libertarians control this party, and when you act like a tyrannical megalomaniac and cast out those who disagree...they go somewhere...and they get together, and they come back.  And for that, I thank you.   As the newly elected Vice Chair of the Libertarian Party of Nevada, I proudly welcome anyone who brings the spirit and energy of libertarianism to the table, regardless of how you dress, how you speak or what you think is best for the party; we will work together to grow this party, respect the individuals who make up our party, and never sacrifice an issue to sway someone or trick someone who isn't libertarian just to get a vote on election day.  Our goal is to get libertarians elected...but we have ethics.  Call me a knucklehead...I'm in great company.

Jason Smith
Vice Chair Libertarian Party of Nevada.

Good people break bad laws

      I don't think we are a divided nation.  The "people" grow angry and cry out "give us healthcare, or give us something else to keep us happy"...it is not as dramatic as our forefather's version of liberty, but alas, we aren't really the same dreamers, fighters and lovers of freedom that our forefathers were...so we kind of deserve what we get.  At least we are all in it for some kind of handout.  We all have something we want our duly elected representatives to do for, or give to, us.  More laws against deviants.  More welfare for us.  Another warning label on hot coffee.  An injunction against a lascivious store going in in our neighborhood.  A law against sagging pants.  A law against gay marriage.  Zero tolerance against possession of a plant.  More money for the trade union I am in.  Subsidies for my affliction, position or group.  I mean...if you aren't trying to get some of the kitty, you're a sucker...right?
    ...do you really care?  Do you mock people who try?  Do you cling to your tattered blanket of comfort instead of letting the boiling blood of an oppressed patriot keep you warm?  There are some who care...sure, but the vast majority only cares that their benefits keep coming in, their medicare is paid for, their retirement is secure...even if their security is paid for by the future and hopes and dreams of millions of young who never had a chance...born into chains, and told at every turn to stop being an individual...just don't make waves...even if you're right...don't cause trouble.  To anyone who ever laughed at a Ron Paul, I get it, you wanted to fit in with the establishment...but please stop posting about how bad it is getting...you helped it along, and your handout was the gag shoved into the mouth of activists who organized and tried playing the game by your rules...and then the rules changed...well played.
    I am constantly in contact with people claiming the game is rigged, the politicians are puppets of a global financial system that plays politics and picks winners.  I don't buy it, I still believe that if 20 million people stood up and joined together in an effort to destroy the system's hold on our lives, it would work.  I thought the tea party was a great thing, until it got sidetracked with abortion and god and the same GOP horseshit that keeps them from ever being a party for liberty.  If a gay man can't fight for liberty, then you don't know what the hell liberty is.  Liberty is not living by a righteous code of conduct...it is allowing others to live the way they see fit, as long as they are not hurting another individual...note I did not say a "society"...I don't believe anyone...even those who memorized their version of the bible, can speak for society.   Society is a group of individuals, and yes...people who disagree with you are still part of society...and what you do to the least of us, you do unto Him. 
    How many times have you had a cop change lanes behind you, and your blood pressure went up, you got nervous and you may have even pulled into another lane to get away...all the while, you were not doing anything wrong?  Is this rational?  Have you ever wondered why you feel this way?  Could it be, that we now have so many laws on the books to "protect us from ourselves", that we actually don't even know if we are committing a crime anymore?  Is this how you want to live?  What can you do about it?  Well...there are meetings the city council has where they discuss things like an increase in sales tax to fund more cops to make you nervous.  Go and tell them what you think.  There are groups that spend hours and dollars putting together pamphlets to inform the public of their rights when stopped by police.  Donate an hour a week to help.  There are organizations that try to educate people about what is in our food, water and prescriptions.  Go learn and spread the message.  There are people who collect and disseminate the horrors of our education system and spend countless hours trying to get the word out that our kids are being indoctrinated for 8 hours a day while you toil away at your cubicle to be able to afford the newest color phone or save up enough money to get your boobs or eyes done.  Homeschool, or offer to help this group with handing out fliers or go to a meeting of the school board and voice your opposition to Common Core. 
    The point is, don't tell people you don't know what you can do...the point is, you can do a lot, but nothing can be done from your couch.  The tree of liberty, from time to time, must be nourished with the blood of patriots and tyrants...but maybe, just maybe...we can hold off that need with a little effort and caring.    I know that getting involved is tough...you may have to miss or record your game.  I understand that the kids need to get to gymnastics or t-ball...but the effort is done for them.  I know your kid's schooling is expensive, and you both work to make ends meet; but your kid would benefit more from learning from you at home, and the school that loses students may start to figure out that the people are tougher to fool when they are informed and educated.  This whole system we live in is seemingly designed to take all the worry and care away from us...we drug our rambunctious kids, we work all day to come home to forget, we give all the power and authority over our lives to police, teachers and other agents...and we forget that we have rights.  We forget that we have the power...but sadly, we forget that we are why we are here.  We have enslaved ourselves, and we may not wake up until it is too late.
    Society that breaks down during a natural disaster is not a very stable society...and if the gov't is what everyone looks to during that disaster, and the agents of the gov't are busy taking care of their own family...then who is going to take care of you?  The answer...is you, your neighbors and your society...including the gay guy, the pot smoker, the conservative, the liberal and the other people who may not follow your way of living.  Stop with the sanctimonious judging of lives, the stupid rules we enforce about lifestyles.  One day, you may need your community, and come to find that it was you who was different and not welcome by all those you sat and judged.  We have rights, but none of our rights can take away another's rights.  When good people break bad laws...punish the lawmaker.
-Rev

A rose by any other name...

     I have seen a resurgence of a movement that is getting away with not being asked simple, but important questions.  I would like to use this blog as a means of asking these questions, defining this movement, and making sure that everyone who mistakenly parrots its talking points understands what it is he/she is advocating.  The movement is from the Democrat party, with many in the GOP allowing/helping or at least acting naïve enough to help further it...it is the 21st century version of the 19th century social system we now know as "Progressivism", but used to be called "Socialism".  It works under the exact same premise, that the "middle class" (used to be called "working class") is the provider of all wealth, and the "Millionaires" (used to be called "capitalists") are the idle ones standing around getting rich off of the workers' toil.
   In the late 19th century, America roundly rejected socialism because of the ways in which it needed to operate...the socialists recognized that a social revolution was not supported by America, so they rebranded, changed definitions, and tried a new approach...incremental socialism without a revolution, done by executive order, majority rule and guilt...all the while avoiding the legal and American way of amending the constitution to make it a "legal transformation" of the system we live in.  Once it started, it could not be undone, because all you need to do is claim it is for the children, the poor, the handicapped...or any other group...regardless of whether the socialist plans even helped those they claim it is for.  So...what was the question that stopped "socialism" in its track at the turn of the 20th century?  "Do you condone confiscation?"  Simple...but the answer provides all you need now to reject it again. 
     Do you condone confiscation?  Confiscation is the only way to make socialism work; it requires the capital and resources of the capitalist to fund and reward those who "work" in productive and unproductive endeavors.  If the answer is yes...you must justify taking the property of someone else...how is this done?  The answer is, a new social system brings along with it, a new code of morals; you suppose that labor alone produces wealth, idleness produces rot, and currently the hands of labor are empty, while the capitalists lay idle.  To bring about progress to a socialist, all private ownership of capital/land must be transferred/confiscated to the hands of labor...its rightful owner.  In justification, two things must happen.  One, a social revolution must be either declared or used to justify the illegality of the act (theft), and an end is needed to illustrate the need for the means.  The end, which is defined now as "for the middle class", used to be called "the working class" and a hundred years ago it was eloquently cloaked as "The requirements of the working class demand a different state of society."  The next step is to claim that socialism is the highest expression of morality and justice...which is part two...the taking of the capital and emancipation of it from the shackles of private ownership. 
     This second part is happening every day, right in front of us, and on facebook.  For instance, when a Libertarian says, "the role of the federal gov't is not to provide food or shelter for the poor", he/she is bombarded with knee jerk phrases from "You hate kids, you want people to die" to "Oh, what would you rather have, people dying in the streets, you monster."  This type of reaction is the defense of the indefensible.  Instead of arguing the point (is the federal gov't the best or appropriate provider of food or shelter), they try to say you are against the end result of having people fed or housed.  This is a needed response to a socialist, because the argument against the federal gov't role in providing is not able to be won by the socialist.  Clearly, the constitution says, in the tenth amendment, that anything not enumerated in the constitution as a role of the federal gov't shall be left to the states, and the people, respectively.  So, we do provide for shelter and food...but not at the federal gov't.  Is the socialist against communities taking care of their own?   Well, no, not necessarily...but their whole goal isn't to take care of the people...it is to consolidate power in a central location so they don't have to fight this fight in the neighborhoods and states.  In this endeavor, they have succeeded.  So, what is the point of fighting socialism if we have to do it on their terms, with their definitions and under their control.  BINGO.  It isn't worth fighting there.
     The beauty of the American way of life is the simplicity with which the constitution was written.  The federal gov't is not able to check houses in Maine, Florida, Alaska and New Mexico...they must rely on states and local gov't to do the dirty work for them.  There are many ways the new progressive and old socialist can facilitate this.  Taxes.  The federal gov't lays taxes, then gives back to states who do their bidding.  The ACA is reliant upon people filing their taxes and providing proof of insurance.  The tea party, in its original form, was a direct attack on the principles of big gov't...it went after taxes.  The new tea party that cares more about abortion and gays than it does kneecapping the goliath federal gov't has become nothing more than a sideshow for the socialist to make fun of...but the original tea party scared the living bejeezus out of them.  I'll leave this point unfinished...because it is not up to me to convince anyone that a revolution is needed to defeat what has already been a victory for socialism.  The victory was won in the courts, the legislature and the executive branch of the federal gov't...and trying to refight this in those arenas is fruitless.  We will stay in this type of gov't, regardless of the words of Ted Cruz or John McCain...the GOP is not trying to reverse anything done over the past 100 years...they simply are running a campaign to manage it.
      I don't want managed socialism...I want an open air, out in the public, up and down the street revolution.  I want people to know that the status quo is an affront to my rights.  I want every Republican that supports what we have now, to be labeled a traitor to the "Republic".  I am not, nor will I ever be, OK with confiscation, regardless of the children or the sick or the old that it is supposed to help.  There is ample evidence that the sick, the children and the elderly are suffering under the thumb of socialism in small steps, and the argument is not about your goals or your ends...it is precisely about your methods.  In short...do not tell me to support any more smaller evils...I am not going to contribute to the system that enslaves me for my own good.  Pick a side, you can't hide anymore. 

I am America’s Unintended Consequences

                I am a twenty year old woman in Los Angeles.  I go to school during the day, and since being laid off of my part time job at the bank I joined a friend I met at a party doing private dancing and the occasional “call girl” activities that have allowed me to put enough money away that I can pay next semester’s tuition.  I don’t have a pimp, I’m not a drug user, I just have found a very lucrative way to pay for my needs while I get my degree in structural engineering.  My parents don’t know it, but my cousin does…you see she does the same thing in Pahrump, NV.  She works at a legal brothel, getting paid to do what I do, only she pays taxes, gets multiple drug and HIV tests throughout the year…and she doesn’t risk getting arrested for it.  I require condoms, and I pay for my own HIV test twice a year, however my clients aren’t screened, I don’t have security outside my room and I might get arrested one day if I am not sure my client isn’t an undercover cop.  The law is to protect society…but it only makes my activities illegal and puts my life in danger.  If it was legal, and someone started a brothel in Los Angeles, I would work there…but as it stands, I take my chances.  Do I have to be a call girl?  No, but I don’t have to go to school either…I made a decision and I have a plan for my future, if I can avoid getting caught for two more years.

                It was a friend who found me.  I was drugged and raped by three, maybe four guys.  They didn’t use condoms…I had my purse and rings stolen.  I can’t call the police, there is no justice for a person that breaks the law.  I have a few decisions to make…do I work while I wait the amount of time to take an HIV test?  Do I have an abortion if I’m pregnant.  Do I tell my parents?  All of these things, because I can’t be honest and legal about my part time job…because society thinks it is wrong, and women’s groups think that I care about being objectified.  I just want my degree, so I can get my career started.  My cousin makes $67,000 a year, works two weeks a month, and can look any of her customers and neighbors in the eye as a member of her community.  I hide in shadows and feel ashamed that I was brutalized, robbed and it’s somehow my fault.  Society’s rules have consequences…and I am them. 

                I’m an eighteen year old black kid in Memphis.  My father died when I was four, my mother is in prison for selling drugs.  I help my grandmother raise my younger brother and sister.  She is on Social Security and we get some help from food stamps and housing assistance…but shoes and bus fare, along with school books and my community college courses cost money.  My mom’s ex-boyfriend grows marijuana in his basement.  I make some deliveries for him, and sometimes get a kickback when my friends buy from him.  I don’t like it, but there aren’t a lot of opportunities in this economy.  I tell my grandmother I do “odd jobs” in the neighborhood, but I think she knows…I know she knows…because she approached me this week.  My grandmother has breast cancer, and I will be taking care of her after her chemotherapy starts.  My grandfather died of colon cancer, so we know what this is going to be like.  My grandmother asked me for a joint, because she knows the pain and nausea she is about to go through will make her so sick, she thinks I won’t be able to take care of her and my siblings.  She blames herself for making me a criminal…but she isn’t doing anything wrong…she just doesn’t want to suffer.  I don’t blame her.  I got the joint from my mom’s ex-boyfriend…and got stopped on the way home because I look like a guy that just robbed a convenience store six blocks away.  Society has rules, and they have consequences…I am the unintended consequences of our rules.

                I am white, male, and middle class.  I work in a warehouse for a company that sells packaging materials.  I drive a forklift, work 50 hours a week, and go to church every Sunday with my family.  I have two kids, my wife and I both drive American cars and we have an autistic child.  Most of my “extra” income goes to my child’s day care for special needs children.  He has Asperger’s syndrome, which makes him difficult to talk with on good days…and impossible to reason with on bad days.  My boss called me into his office today.  He has to cut my hours to 29/week and I am losing my health insurance and benefits because he has too many employees working full time and is mandated by law to comply with the Affordable Care Act.  I begged him, I even asked if I can stay full time and pay more from my paycheck to cover the cost…but he is penalized for every employee that is full time that doesn’t get the health insurance.  My wife will need to go find work…probably part time…then we will have to pay for our insurance or be taxed under the new law.  I was making it work before, but now…now I need gov’t assistance?  I used to have pride, but now I’m one of the 47%?  What do I tell my friends at church who will accuse me of being a drain on the system?  My wife and I aren’t bad people, my kids didn’t do anything to deserve this?  My boss said his alternative was to close and move to a different state with lower costs…or outsource to China or India for our supply chain.  Someone was bound to get screwed here, and it turns out I am him.  I am the unintended consequences of America.   

                Please, America, if you want to help…please stop making rules for society based on emotion, feelings and good intentions.  This country was founded on principles…but those principles didn’t need to be enforced, they were taught.  We have a military in all corners of the world, good people…with good intentions, imposing their will and values at the end of a gun…or drone.  We have police in the USA kicking down doors, tazing women and beating drivers who don’t comply with their orders.  We have politicians spewing hate and divisive campaign slogans meant to demonize one party while holding the other up as the only righteous way.  We have community leaders calling for war on a whole race/ethnicity.  And then we wonder why some of our children grow up and shoot a school full of children?  Every mother needs to know that her choices will have effects on her child.  Ever father needs to know that every moment he spends with his child will have effects on his child.  Every preacher at church needs to know that his words will have an effect on his congregation.  Our actions have consequences, and our teachers need to know that what they teach our children will have an effect on what the child grows up to be.  This is not a time to blame a video game…blame a parent who uses that video game to entertain their kid for an evening.  Do not blame a gun, blame the parent who doesn’t lock it away when they have children who are naturally curious.  Do not blame the color of clothes or a style of music, blame the glorification and permissive attitudes of our communities toward our youth who emulate those violent messages.   It is time to take our lives back, and it isn’t a law that will empower us to do this.  It is our actions and our efforts at home, at school and in our lives.  Be responsible…so that the government doesn’t HAVE to be.  Stop using excuses.  Be an American.
-REV

The implosion of the GOP and the changing nature of politics.

                It started with a bold prediction; Romney would win because he was electable, Obama was the steward of a horrible economy, and nothing could be worse than another four years of Obama.  What happened next may be looked at in the future as the implosion…the utter collapse…of the Republican Party.  Hyperbole?  Maybe, maybe not.   Obama had won the election, and kept  a sound majority in the Senate…while the GOP maintained a slight grasp on the House.  The people had spoken, we would rather not have the GOP back in office to continue where they left off…but we don’t want Obama and Democrats to have unfettered control of the government, lest it result in utter chaos and more unfunded liabilities.  Stalemate.  So, how does the GOP react to a rebuking of their message of Moderate Mitt?  An unabashed whack at their conservative base, who didn’t turn out the vote because of a lack of credibility in the conservative chops of the GOP leadership.  Yeah, it makes no sense…and even less when you look at the next GOP move.

                Within a month of losing the election, the Republican leadership is wavering on issues like debt ceiling negotiations, tax rates and immigration while instead focus on changing  their image as the evil wagers of war on women, minorities and the young by considering the adoption of policies meant to assuage those whom they were not waging war on by now favoring them with legislative “goodies”…which is how the Democrats won much of their support.  Some say this is a step in the right direction for a party that was admonished at the ballot box for not being “for women, minorities and students”.  History will show, however, that Republicans lost support because of their focus on issues like abortion, religion, marijuana prohibition and gay marriage.   The net result will be an erosion of the fiscal conservative base, while the socially liberal base will never believe the meager attempts at pandering…mainly because the Democrats will pander ever more.  The final picture of this puzzle is a Republican party that looks like the Democrats of the 70’s, while the Democrats look like the socialists of the 50’s…except without having to hide their Scarlett S on their chest.  Where, oh where will an American turn politically to find a party that doesn’t plunder his wealth to give to others that are willing to sell their votes?  What party will speak for someone who doesn’t want anything from their government other than the responsibilities laid out in the constitution?  The same place more than a million voters went in 2012 when they realized that the lesser of two evils is what the greater of two evils was 30 years ago. 

                Live Free…it is the slogan and rallying cry of the free man.   We don’t want anything special or from anyone else.  We know our government is a useful tool and has the authority to do what the constitution outlines.  Namely, protect its citizens from abuse and fraud, as well as provide for the national defense.  Where we differ from Republicans and Democrats is simply this; the department of education should be in the state capital, not the US Capital.  The printing of money should not be used because we need cash to pay for programs we can’t afford.  A war should be a hard fought struggle to defend this nation from imminent danger, not a social experiment to convert people to our way of thinking or a method of securing resources through force against sovereign people.  Pretty radical…compared to what we have become accustomed to hearing the role of government is.  We are not anarchists, we don’t want 50 different currencies in the USA, and we don’t want to be enslaved by a militant Islamic nation hell-bent on world domination.  Why is our choice always between made-up extremes we do not espouse?  Because if you are allowed to hear the arguments of libertarianism in a mainstream debate…you might realize that there is another way that isn’t just a degree of evil.  Live Free.  It really is that simple…and it starts with you, not FOX, not CNN and not the political parties run by millionaires who think they can tailor  their message to buy your support.  All we offer is freedom, if that isn’t enough…keep selling your vote.  My vote is free, but I am proud of where I put it.

 

-Rev

How The GOP Misunderstands Libertarians (and why they are angry)

    Kissing cousins, angry extremists, anarchists, potheads, rabble-rousers, malcontents, Obama-supporters…these are all things the GOP associate with Libertarians…but is it right, accurate or fair?  Yes and no…but possibly not for the reasons you may think.  Many people think Libertarians are a fringe offshoot from the Republicans…possibly due to the fact that some of the GOP platform has references to some of the ethos of the LP.  This is a major factor as to why Republicans hold the notion that Libertarian votes are supposed to be GOP votes, and there is true anger and fear when it doesn’t go as planned, like now.   But, to really understand the situation, a few layers need to be peeled back.  Let’s do that!

     Libertarian ethos: Force shall not be used toward any individual who is not infringing on the rights of others.  GOP usage of this idea is that business and corporations should not be hindered by extreme environmental regulations…but the gov’t still has to regulate cars, refrigerators, irons, pets, food, air travel, seatbelts, bottled water etc…as well as subsidize farmers, give foreign aid to allies and enemies, police the world, be able to kill or detain anyone, anywhere for anything, wiretapping, prohibit drugs, limit abortions, protect certain religions, prosecute crimes differently due to racial/sexual motivations etc.  You see…a simple Libertarian principle of not using force has been “compromised” by Republicans who think that the only thing worse than dealing with the devil (the extreme left), is to hold to your principles…so compromise is the path of the GOP.  If you support the Dems, you clearly support Obama and the leftist agenda…but if you support the GOP, you are supporting the leftist agenda implemented in smaller incremental installments in order to appease those on the left who demagogue and incite feelings to combat the growing problems caused by even incremental instillations of unprincipled, illogical, unsustainable, feel-good policies that have numerous unintended consequences that eventually will have to be dealt with (presumably with more unprincipled, illogical, unsustainable, feel-good policies with more unintended consequences that eventually…).  I think you get it now.  J

     So the tired refrain of “a vote for Gary is a vote for Obama” is actually the dumbest thing a Republican can say to a Libertarian, because the only reason someone has actually used their noodle and joined the LP is because they are tired of BOTH parties in power moving this country further away from the ideals of the founding fathers…and I say that with absolutely zero nostalgic feeling…just the notion that those guys set up a system to avoid our current problems by making the individual more important than the “good of the whole” by offering protections to the individual from the whole…which have been watered down and done away with by the collusion of both parties in power for the past 100 years.  All this points to the “vote for Obama is a vote for Romney” sentiment that is common among Libertarians…however there is one point that sticks in the side of argumentative Republicans stumping for Romney.  That is this: Name me one big gov’t policy the GOP has ever done away with, without substituting with another big/bigger gov’t policy?  Truth is, the GOP is not going to repeal Obamacare, without putting in another bureaucracy in its place.  In fact, Romney has already said so much…so why should we support soft tyranny when there is another option? 

          So, after establishing that Romney is just a slower form of oppression and clearly just the “lesser of two evils”, there remains another problem with Libertarians, in the eyes of the “Right”.  Personal responsibility.  Republicans love to talk about this topic, but are not as quick to follow their own advice, or hold others accountable.  Hurricane Sandy.  Lots of devastation, but nothing that a couple hard weeks can’t fix.  Our country has handled far worse.  In fact, this region is known to have pretty bad storms this time of year.  How many people are sitting in their homes without water, power, food, medical attention, etc?  Whose responsibility is it to make sure they have water? The City?  The State?  The Federal Gov’t?  The Red Cross?  There are people actually telling the public not to support the Red Cross because their charity to Sandy victims is not fast or wide spread enough to make up for what the gov’t is UNABLE to provide   Is anyone saying that we should stop paying taxes because the gov’t isn’t doing what THEY SAID they would to provide for you? .(thus, the enumerated powers limitation for the gov’t)  How much FEMA money will be spent there, paid for by the rest of tax paying Americans who don’t live in a hurricane area.  It would be like me asking the federal gov’t to subsidize my power bills for the summer months in Nevada.  Why is someone else responsible for the decisions I make?   Do I want them all to starve and die?  NO…but, when non union help arrives to assist, and they are turned away…then blame your local union bosses.  If a private citizen has a generator, stored water, dehydrated food, blankets and matches…and you don’t…don’t cry to the gov’t that you didn’t get your fair share…you simply didn’t plan for the worst case scenario…and shame on you.  But Republicans are much more likely to ration and price fix gasoline and water, than to allow the market to force prices to rise on limited resources…which is what causes demand to wane, and you have a nice controlled chaos that clearly shows how to not waste a perfectly good crisis.  No doubt, we will have federal funds create a super bunker to handle 6 million people without water…a much better idea than forcing all these short sighted, gov’t reliant morons to become better citizens and prepare themselves.  Say what you want about Mormons…you don’t see them in line at a gov’t bread line.  They are at home with several neighbors baking their own bread because they stocked up on potable water, flour and other raw materials.   You don’t have to move to Utah, become a Prepper, or go on a mission to help less fortunate…but when it starts to rain, and you don’t stop facebooking long enough to grab enough supplies to stay alive for 72 hours…then I really don’t think it is my job to give a shit…I mean, you don’t.

The American Divide (A hypothetical look at what a “United States of Liberty” would look like)

                We are at a tipping point, and like any large company or country that cannot agree on policy, future plans or who is to lead, we need to make hard decisions based ideologically as well as pragmatically.  What do we do when roughly half the country wants more government involvement and the other half is stifled and frustrated at the lack of liberty and freedom still permitted under the law?    Do you have the right, when you are in office, to restrict the rights of some people because you know best for everyone?  There is a growing vocal opposition to the unreasonable measures being taken on our behalf, and many of these measures end up just causing more damage than they are supposed to help.  What do we do?

                Can we agree that ideologically, we will never compromise with the “other side”?  As a Libertarian, I cannot abide gov’t intrusion into my personal and business decisions when I am not hurting or using force against anyone.  How does this ever get reconciled with a person who thinks that people inherently need the gov’t to show them right from wrong, to guide them when the path is murky or dark, and to limit them from hurting themselves…all the while knowing that if they fail at something, the gov’t saviors will provide for them without regard to where that funding comes from…all they know is that it is their right.  I see one way to assuage both sides, but it will take some very fine negotiating, and a few Uhauls.

                I am suggesting that at the next US Census we ask one more question, “If the constitution is not a valid document and guiding principle of the current US Gov’t, would you support a split with the Union to allow two separate and roughly equal boundaries where one would adhere to the principles of our founding documents (Yes that means getting rid of Social Security, Medicare, Obamacare etc.) , while the other pursues a more progressive gov’t with a new constitution that includes the “right” to welfare, healthcare and other assumed “rights” from the “FORWARD” mindset.   The split could be done taking into consideration land and agriculture, raw materials and mineral rights to give both sides roughly even starting points.  Passports would need to be issued so one side cannot just “abandon ship” when they go broke (guess which side that would be).  Then, and only then would both Dems and Repubs be forced to choose between sides, and they would be forced to stop nickel and diming the public into a progressive cesspool.

                I don’t want to discuss North vs South, I don’t think that is a fair or doable way to split this country, in fact the only way would be to get census data, and delve into political ideologies of local politicians and use demographics to assist.  There would be some butt-hurt people that would have to move, or adapt…it won’t be perfect, but think about it…you are a hard working entrepreneur who is being told that it is your duty, your fair share, to pay for healthcare, retirement, public schools, drug interdiction etc…and you may not have political aspirations or feelings about these issues, but you are being forced to pay for them.  How is that freedom?  How is that Liberty?  If this sounds Randian (Ayn, not Paul) I guess it sort of is, but when I am given the lesser of two evils to choose from, haven’t we just admitted that our ideology of self-reliance and individual responsibility is dead?  Shouldn’t we part ways as trading partners and friends…and let the other pursue the more radical agenda they really want, but have to drag us kicking and screaming to?  We could let the Progressive States of America invade Libya, Syria etc, and we could live with a clear conscience.  We could let NY and California dictate the policy of the PSA while Wyoming and Arizona and Texas focus on bringing as many businesses to states that embrace capitalism and free enterprise.  We could allow Oregon and Washington to  protect their trees and owls, and ban the use of combustible engines, while Colorado and New Mexico embrace legalized marijuana and the freedom to marry in a church without the gov’t checking genitals.  We could have Massachusetts and Minnesota offer free health care to bring people there, while Georgia and Ohio offer no corporate taxes, allow foreign repatriation of profits and no minimum wages to allow the accelerated job growth and prosperity…with the worker’s right to leave at any time. 

                So…which side would you be on?  Would you fight to keep the union?  Would you do so, knowing that one side is enslaving  the other  to support it, else it would fail.  Do you think it is “unfair” to allow the productive members of society to abandon the tyranny set up by the recipient class?  Would you kill to keep them enslaved?  Would you allow a peaceful split, or would you force an armed insurrection?  Yeah, heavy stuff…but so is taxation without representation…only a few hundred years ago.  Is it not the right of any American citizen to question his government and if not given acceptable answers and accountability, is it not his god given right to resist tyranny?  Are we there?  I don’t know…but the question is starting to be asked…so I imagine we may be approaching that tipping point.  Now…with this being the alternative…is a third party still “not viable”…or do you just like the path we’re on?  Decisions have consequences…and those consequences have been delayed for a century.  And those chickens are coming home to roost.   I, personally, like the idea of living in a country...a home...called the United States of Liberty.  I don't really care where it is...just not Chicago...that place is trashed already.