Is there such a thing as Libertarian Nationalism? The advent of the Tea Party movement early in 2009 gave the hope of vitality to many in the lethargic Liberty Movement. It seemed that people were finally waking up to the realization that big government was threatening to quash our freedoms. It seemed that we might have allies in our quest for minimal government and maximal liberty. Alas, our hopes were quickly quashed. In the summer of 2009, realizing that there were some within the Tea Party movement who were fooled by the rhetoric and identified with the Republican Party, Republican operatives formed the well funded and organized Tea Party Express. This political tool quickly compromised the message and aspirations of the overall movement and became the Tea Partys unofficial media representative. The Tea Party Express started drawing in members whose ideals were quite different than the ideals of limited taxation and small government held by the original grassroots Tea Party. They recruited members of the patriot and militia movements. The Tea Party started to focus on ancillary issues such as restricting immigration, strengthening our borders and supporting our troops. The Tea Party had degenerated from a populist-libertarian movement to a tool of nationalist Republicans. From the comingling of libertarian and nationalist leaning individuals within the Tea Party Express, a strange hybrid has emerged. Some people have come to self-identify as Libertarian Nationalists. While those well grounded in libertarian principles and philosophy will see right away that the term Libertarian Nationalist is oxymoronic, we might be well served in showing why. Libertarianism, revolves around two fundamental principles: the self ownership and the non-aggression principles. The self ownership principle holds that we each own ourselves and the products of our labor. We can do with either what we choose. I may offer my labor to you for a fee or because I desire to give it to you, but I cannot be compelled to work against my will. The non aggression principle holds that I have no right to aggress against you and you have no right to aggress against me. Aggression in this context refers not only to physical coercion, but coercion by deceit and fraud. Aggression in this context does not relate to aggressive actions undertaken in proportional defense. Other than the prohibition against aggression, libertarians can relate freely with one another in any way that they choose. Nationalism is a construct that holds that an individuals identity is somehow tied to the nation (another construct) in which he was born; the individual is defined by the state. A nationalist will sacrifice himself for the construct that the state exists above and beyond the individuals that compose it. The nationalist will volunteer for or allow himself to be conscripted into his countrys military and aggress against other individuals of other countries in order to preserve the construct of State. The nationalist will comply with or assist the State as it aggresses against other States or even individuals within his own nation. Under a nationalist system, people can be prohibited from certain interactions with others. They might be denied the right to travel to certain countries and they are restricted in who they can hire based on the nationality of the individual. Love of country is not in and of itself nationalism. In his essay The State, Randolph Bourne differentiated Country from State: Our idea of Country concerns itself with the non-political aspects of a people, its ways of living, its personal traits, its literature and art, its characteristic attitudes toward life. We can love our country without being nationalists. I love America because of its diverse cultural influences and dynamic/chaotic nature. America to me is centered around the people that comprise it. The people are not defined by America. The people define America. Libertarianism and Nationalism are antithetical to one another. If you identify with the state you deny your individuality. If you identify with the state, you aggress against the individual. Many of us strongly identify with our homeland…our country. Our idea of Country concerns itself with the non-political aspects of a people, its ways of living, its personal traits, its literature and art, its characteristic attitudes toward life.
Posted on: Fri, 22 Nov 2013 05:01:50 +0000
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