What is a Libertarian?

By -  Rex Ballard

statism vs. libertarianism model

All labels, when applied to people, points of view or ideology are dangerous because they imply a level of binary discipline. You either "are" or you "aren’t". Early in my life, as I became more aware of the world around me and the fact that the world didn’t actually revolve around me, I decided to become more politically active and I would actually register to vote. So, of course the first thing you are confronted with is to declare your affiliation. When I asked the person helping me fill out the voter registration card what it meant to be a "republican" or a "democrat" (the "big two") I didn’t feel like I really fit into either of those camps – there were things he described a democrat as that I would think…"yeah that’s me", but there were also things about a republican that I would also think…"yeah, that’s me". So with this dilemma, I focused on the other choices, which at that time were "libertarian", or "unaffiliated". Well, unaffiliated didn’t seem like a real choice so through this crude process of elimination I decided I was a Libertarian – even though I didn’t actually know what a Libertarian was, I simply assumed it applied to someone like me who could see virtue in aspects of the democrat and republican dogma of the time.

I was a child of the 70’s. Too young to actually be sucked into the Vietnam War but old enough to know a lot of people who were. Also, old enough to have strong opinions about just how little was accomplished as a result of that war and what a high price was paid in terms of; a) human and financial sacrifice, b) public resentment both for and against the war and c) the huge rift that was created in our political thinking. I was personally conflicted in that I was and am a firm believer that capitalism and democracy, in spite of their inherent flaws are a better alternative to other forms of government as they contribute to an individual’s right and ability to pursue their own personal liberty, which is a foundational belief of libertarian political philosophy. So, this early thinking framed my belief of what it meant to be a "Libertarian".

However, after doing a bit more research and by listening to people of the time who tried to define what a Libertarian was, I began to have serious doubts that I really fit into this party affiliation. Historically, libertarians believe that individuals have a right to exercise their individual freedom and to freely associate. The underlying philosophy goes on to suggest that there should be little or no role for Government. These two key tenets of liberalism have made for some strange bedfellows. So, I find it interesting that liberalism, as the underlying tenet of Libertarian politics, has been co-opted by people on both ends of the political spectrum. In the 60’s, radical groups who were opposed to the Vietnam War advocated anarchy under a "Libertarian" call. At the same time, there were figures such as Barry Goldwater on the extreme right who espoused small Government under a "Libertarian" mantle.

Today, John Stossel is a public personality who defines himself as Libertarian and does a good job of articulating his view of what it means. John Stossel, currently has a regular program on Fox Business Channel and is frequently a contributor on other Fox News programs. Previously, John Stossel had a popular segment that often appeared on ABC’s 20/20. Stossel, chooses to emphasize individual freedom and "the free market" as an alternative to outright anarchy. However, his views on free market do suggest a much smaller role for Government. As an example he has suggested that the FDA as an agency contributes as much if not more so to the danger of the public as it does to its safety. He cites such examples as the delays in releasing drugs to the US market when many of these drugs are widely distributed and used in other countries and how the massive bureaucracy of the FDA contributes directly to the high cost of drugs in the U.S. He has also suggested that the FDA’s attempt to ban electronic cigarettes, while not banning cigarettes, suggest that they play a role in protecting an industry that kills thousands of people every year. Alternatively, Stossel suggests that the "free market" can sort this all out. If people want to kill themselves by smoking cigarettes, real or electronic – it’s their right to do so. Furthermore, if a company sells a drug that is dangerous, the legal system will penalize them for doing so.

So, once again I can see merit to his viewpoint on a number of levels, but I’m not sure I’m ready to completely eliminate the FDA and rely on the free market to decide what is and isn’t safe. If I’m the poor schmuck who dies after taking an untested medication it gives me little comfort to know that my survivors will be able to sue on my behalf. But at the same time, he has a legitimate point; we may be jeopardizing lives in attempt to guarantee the public’s safety. Furthermore, we see that the safety net has a lot of holes in it given the number of class action law suits drug developers face. All of which contribute to the high cost of medicine.

So, what is a Libertarian? As with all labels the definition depends on the point of view of the beholder. Its two most basic principles are a person’s right to exercise their individual liberty and a world with very limited government intervention.

A Modest Proposal

By -  Judy Sherrard

For decades, our nation has fought bitterly over whether abortion should be illegal or criminalized. Certain politicians now are actually wringing their hands over the ethics of contraception. Rather than expect people to go against human nature and only copulate when they want children, I propose a better solution. And my antidote to all of these problems is probably already within our reach technologically.

Why not infuse the public water supply with birth control? Surely, if we put our best minds on it, we could come up with a side-effect-free formulation that rendered the population sterile unless they took an antidote. In my plan, this antidote (also side-effect-free) would cost nothing and be available in every store in the country, sitting in little baskets next to cash registers. Want a baby? Grab a handful of the blister-packed pills the next time you’re getting a Starbucks or a gallon of milk.

The catch is that the antidote would have to be taken much the same way as traditional birth control pills are now: three weeks on the pill, one week off. And the other catch, and this is a big one, both male and female have to take the antidote. After six months of the antidote, your fertility returns to normal and you can proceed with the baby-making. All this program demands is a bit of planning and engineering.

Put my plan into effect and no one is denied the right to have children except those who are unable to follow the antidote regime and I’d argue that if you are intellectually unable to do that, you probably are not mentally ready to handle a baby. Is your life too disorganized to accommodate the antidote? Then you’re probably too disorganized to have a baby right now.

I confess that the idea of engineering the antidote to be a bit challenging occurred to me after listening to teen-agers discuss how to correctly take the birth control pill and under what circumstances people got pregnant. Their mind-boggling combination of ignorance and inexperience made my ears spin on my skull. I never want these kids to be entrusted with little baby versions of themselves until they mature about 20 more years. But I digress….

Think about all of the problems this system would solve. There would be no more unwanted children. Teen-aged pregnancies would drop to almost nil, which means tens of thousands of children would not be added to the public support rolls. A teen-ager whose life probably would grind to a miserable halt if she got pregnant would at least have a shot at a better life than the one she’d have if she had a baby, i.e., working at multiple minimum-wage jobs and collecting food stamps.

About fourteen bazillion dollars would also be saved that are now poured into saving and repairing babies born to drug-addled mothers. Also think of the relief this would bring to the people who might otherwise be saddled with the catastrophe of having to raise the grandchildren produced and abandoned by their drug-addicted children.

　
One of the best features of my system is that it shuts up, totally and forever, the yodeling cacophony that surrounds abortion. No one ever needs an abortion in the new world, except in medical emergencies. Everyone in the new world is pregnant because they really, really, really want a baby. And they prove that commitment by having six months to think it over carefully while they take the antidote.

I’m a miserly, pragmatic person and I love the idea of saving baskets of money, as well as saving children from being born into situations where they’re doomed before they can even get both feet out of the womb. I also love the idea of sparing teen-agers the tragedy of seeing their lives tank after one impulsive, teen-ager-ly act, i.e., sex resulting in an unplanned pregnancy. There is a lot of misery spinning around - and a lot of money burned to ameliorate that misery - which is directly attributable to unplanned, unwanted children. If turning the tables on conception, so that you have to take pills to get pregnant rather than the other way around, alleviates all of these problems, why not give it a try?

Memories of The Day Dr. King Was Killed

By - Bill Holmes

April 4th is the 44th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. It was a Thursday evening at 6:00 p.m. in 1968. He was only 39 years old. The point of this blog is not to detail the events surrounding that tragic day or dissect it's historical importance. It is to give you my perspective on my thoughts and circumstances of that day. I hope you find it a different view by someone who was in a rather unique situation.



A little background. I grew up in Jacksonville, Florida in a middle class white family. It was a completely segregated city. Separate water fountains, restrooms, schools, restaurants, etc. "Colored" was the polite term for Africa-Americans. You can probably guess the usual term used. I attended Catholic school from kindergarten through high school. We were the first school in Jacksonville to integrate in 1963 and the first black student was in my homeroom. Still, there were very few minorities of any kind in my social circles but there were blacks everywhere. Part of the scenery. I was a young man fresh out of college in 1968 and starting the work phase of my life. I went from the University of South Florida in Tampa to Atlanta with absolutely no career or life plan. I got a job within a couple of days at the First National Bank of Atlanta working the graveyard shift in the very new Computer Department. I chose that job over teller/branch trainee because it paid 10% more for the night shift. I could use the extra money and I'm a night owl by nature. The job and night shift play a part in this story.
At the time I was living on 12th St. between Peachtree and West Peachtree in the Piedmont/Ga. Tech area. I know, all the streets in Atlanta have Peachtree as part of the name. It was the "Hippie" area and not the safest neighborhood. Who cares, not me. I didn't have a car at the time and took the bus to work. I would walk two blocks and catch the bus right in front of the WTBS, channel 17 studio (the original Ted Turner TV station) on W. Peachtree. It was always dark and usually 10:00 p.m. or later. That bus was coming from Buckhead to downtown. Buckhead is one of the richest sections of Atlanta. The vast majority of the passengers were domestics, cooks, restaurant workers and office cleaning crews. They were also almost 100% black. Being young, naïve and immortal that never crossed my mind. I was the one absolutely white guy in a suit, yes even night shift bankers had to wear suits, among a bus full of hardworking tired folks. After the first week or so, I had a friendly relationship with many of the regulars.

I'm a little fuzzy on some of the details of that day. It was a long time ago, my brain is less than perfect and I didn't realize at the time the importance in our history.

I think I was asleep when the assassination took place. I wasn't due to be at work for four or five hours. One of the managers called and said I needed to come into work an hour or two early. I walked up to the bus stop around 8:00 or 9:00 p.m. It was still dark and the bus was full of the same mix of passengers. There was a very different vibe on the bus. Everyone stared at little whitey in a suit. The driver looked nervous and anxious. I don't think he was thrilled I was getting on the bus. By then, I knew Dr. King has been shot but being stupid I figured the cold and piercing stares were because I'd caught an earlier bus. No familiar faces. That bus route went to or near Peachtree and Marietta streets in downtown Atlanta. That's where many of the north/south and east/west bus lines met. All night the area was full of hundreds of people changing buses. I had to walk about a block to get to the night entrance of the bank. There was a discernible buzz in the air. Not the most comfortable walk to work but still no fear. The First National Bank of Atlanta was at 2 Peachtree St.
Once inside I realized something serious was going on. There were several armed guards in the lobby (usually only one). They had the doors and elevators guarded. When I got off the elevator at the 4th floor there was a guard and another by the computer room door. There were actual day shift managers still there. The swing shift guys had been busy making backups of everything. Tapes, disks, punch cards, documentation and printouts were stacked up everywhere. The plan was to take all the backups to an offsite vault in the north Georgia mountains that the bank had. I think the money vault guys were doing the same thing. A riot was fully expected. Sometime after midnight we were pretty much caught up and the backups were on the way. My boss (about a year older than me) and I decided to see what was happening in Atlanta. No, we didn't go back out on Peachtree, we went up to a vacant floor in the very new FNB Atlanta tower. I think we went to the 38th floor, the building was 41 or 42 floors. The 38th floor was vacant except for a few metal studs and the elevators. We had a 360 degree view of Atlanta. The area around the bank was pretty quiet but we could look east and see the neighborhood around Ebenezer Baptist Church (Sweet Auburn), Dr. King's home church. By then we were a little more nervous but we were also beginning to realize that maybe we were witnessing something important and historical. Some cities had riots, looting or at least disturbances and demonstrations. Surely Dr. King's home city and base would erupt. We could tell that there was activity in Sweet Auburn. Everything was lit up. Amazingly there was no looting or torching in Atlanta. We made it through the night. I rode the bus home late Friday morning. The bus and downtown were very empty. None of my normal fellow passengers going to work in Buckhead. I had to go to work on the bus Friday night. Not many passengers again. We usually finished Friday nights at 3:00 or 4:00 in the morning. No rush to head home in the middle of the night. I did a little extra work and then had breakfast at the almost empty Krystal (scrambled eggs, sausage, grits and toast – all greasy, all delicious). It took a few days after Dr. King's funeral, but life got back to normal. The backups returned from the mountain vault, the folks on the late bus to downtown talked with me and we got back to one guard in the bank lobby.

I think the fact that Atlanta didn't erupt, with a very valid reason to do so, had a profound effect on me. A very hurt and oppressed segment of society didn't take it out on an easy target when I was in harm's way that night. The bus rides were great experiences too. I met some wonderful people. The events of 4/4/68 changed my views on race relations, they got me to think about it. Since then I've tried to be much more empathetic to all. Sometimes I succeed. If it's how you were born (black, brown, bald, Asian, gay, poor, male or female, challenged, ill, short...) I'm on your side. If it's something under your control (or perceived control) I'm not yet perfectly accepting. Still working on that.

Dr. King had a profound effect on my life. Some of it from personal experiences in 1968 and some from his efforts, writings, speeches and philosophy. A couple of others did too. John, Martin & Bobby all gone. It was a very rough decade. If you don't know who or what I mean, shame on you. Sad I had to live through this but glad I did. Maybe I'm a little better person for it.