Re: Libertarian Values/Beliefs
It has come to my attention that some people do not understand the Libertarian values that some of us hold dear.
These are the values of liberty and limited government, such as those held by the founders of the United States of America.
They don't include racist laws against the intoxicants of choice of minorities. They don't include bedroom police. They don't include the robbery (enslavement) of the working people by private banks, as is institutionalized by the Federal Reserve in American governance today, which gives control of our currency to private institutions. They don't include cronyism and bailouts. They don't include foreign invasions at the discretion of international powers (including banking interests). None of these things existed at America's founding; they were not values held by America's founders.
There's nothing in here about "fundamental arguments." There's nothing about "outcome of process." There's nothing about "radical permissiveness;" anything anyone does that effects you can still be regulated under Libertarian principles. Such language is an attempt to mislead and deceive, not honest discourse. While there is obviously room for legitimate debate regarding an appropriate level of "permissiveness," I don't think there's cause to describe "liberty" as inherently "radical." In fact, I find such an anti-freedom baseline to be disturbingly radical.
These are Libertarian beliefs. As such, disagreeing with these is disagreeing with Libertarian beliefs and values. Disagreeing with things not remotely mentioned or hinted here is not attacking Libertarian beliefs or values. While this list is not exhaustive, I find it pretty comprehensive. Personally, I don't agree with 100% of the positions here 100%. But they are pretty representative of Libertarian values, while there is some variety of opinions on some of the finer points below among Libertarians and those who lean Libertarian.
Libertarian Party Platform, Adopted in Convention, May 2012, Las Vegas, NV:
PREAMBLE
As Libertarians, we seek a world of liberty; a world in which all individuals are sovereign over their own lives and no one is forced to sacrifice his or her values for the benefit of others.
We believe that respect for individual rights is the essential precondition for a free and prosperous world, that force and fraud must be banished from human relationships, and that only through freedom can peace and prosperity be realized.
Consequently, we defend each person's right to engage in any activity that is peaceful and honest, and welcome the diversity that freedom brings. The world we seek to build is one where individuals are free to follow their own dreams in their own ways, without interference from government or any authoritarian power.
In the following pages we have set forth our basic principles and enumerated various policy stands derived from those principles.
These specific policies are not our goal, however. Our goal is nothing more nor less than a world set free in our lifetime, and it is to this end that we take these stands.
STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES
We, the members of the Libertarian Party, challenge the cult of the omnipotent state and defend the rights of the individual.
We hold that all individuals have the right to exercise sole dominion over their own lives, and 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 in whatever manner they choose.
Governments throughout history have regularly operated on the opposite principle, that the State has the right to dispose of the lives of individuals and the fruits of their labor. Even within the United States, all political parties other than our own grant to government the right to regulate the lives of individuals and seize the fruits of their labor without their consent.
We, on the contrary, deny the right of any government to do these things, and hold that where governments exist, they must not violate the rights of any individual: namely, (1) the right to life -- accordingly we support the prohibition of the initiation of physical force against others; (2) the right to liberty of speech and action -- accordingly we oppose all attempts by government to abridge the freedom of speech and press, as well as government censorship in any form; and (3) the right to property -- accordingly we oppose all government interference with private property, such as confiscation, nationalization, and eminent domain, and support the prohibition of robbery, trespass, fraud, and misrepresentation.
Since governments, when instituted, must not violate individual rights, we oppose all interference by government in the areas of voluntary and contractual relations among individuals. People should not be forced to sacrifice their lives and property for the benefit of others. They should be left free by government to deal with one another as free traders; and the resultant economic system, the only one compatible with the protection of individual rights, is the free market.
1.0 Personal Liberty
Individuals should be free to make choices for themselves and to accept responsibility for the consequences of the choices they make. No individual, group, or government may initiate force against any other individual, group, or government. Our support of an individual's right to make choices in life does not mean that we necessarily approve or disapprove of those choices.
1.1 Expression and Communication
We support full freedom of expression and oppose government censorship, regulation or control of communications media and technology. We favor the freedom to engage in or abstain from any religious activities that do not violate the rights of others. We oppose government actions which either aid or attack any religion.
1.2 Personal Privacy
Libertarians support the rights recognized by the Fourth Amendment to be secure in our persons, homes, and property. Protection from unreasonable search and seizure should include records held by third parties, such as email, medical, and library records. Only actions that infringe on the rights of others can properly be termed crimes. We favor the repeal of all laws creating