OK you rational thinking libertarians, lets examine your philosophy for a moment in the context of reality. Libertarians and conservatives in America vary on the degree of their commitment to ideological purity, but the idea at the heart of this Americanized version of libertarianism is a form of rugged individualism as the highest valuation worthy of respect within the framework of a free society. The basic principle is one of non-aggression, which is to say that no one or no government should be able to force anything onto someone without their express consent. This can take the form of anarchy or minimalist governance. Most often this comes up against the idea of a nationalized health care system or, at times, even the concept of public roadways. Also at the heart of this philosophy is a red herring in the form of an irrational fear of tyranny through mob rule. I call this a red herring because it puts forth a worst case scenario that is irrelevant to the cooperation of citizens through government to establish policies that balance everyones individual interests with the public good. They fail to see that the same kind of red herring could be argued against their own perspective which neglects the reality of excessive individual freedom leading to a state of inequality from which the very same tyranny springs in the form of oligarchy and plutocracy. For instance, to say you are OK with a health care plan that allows you to opt out, is to set yourself apart from the society which you benefit from in many other ways, by selectively choosing to oppose a policy that would benefit everyone by claiming a form of autonomy that doesnt actually exist. By living in a society where you partake of inventions and progress contributed by others you are, by default, not an island of individualism, but a part of a greater whole that subsists on the existence of others. This is alright, its in your nature as a human being to be a social animal with empathy and consideration. A consideration that would recognize that utilizing a cooperative effort through democratic means is not a slippery slope to tyranny, but the very way we should be doing things.
Posted on: Mon, 19 May 2014 03:45:07 +0000
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