As has been explained a billion time now, libertarians are a diverse group of people. They run a range of political identities all the way from an-caps who consider themselves libertarian to libertarian socialists. There are socially conservative libertarians (these people are usually personally very conservative but often don’t seek to use the government to make everyone else live the way they do) and there are socially progressive libertarians (like myself).
Socially Progressive, ‘Bleeding-heart’ libertarians, like myself do not oppose government intervention because we are stockpiling arms in our basement for the great war. We don’t oppose government regulation in the market because we want Goldman Sachs to get rich. We think healthcare works best when the patient is the customer, not the government or insurance companies.
The primary beliefs of libertarians are:
1) The NAP. The Non-Aggression principle. Clinically defined this is ‘an ethical stance which asserts that aggression, coercion, force (preemptively) are inherently illegitimate. To a libertarian, this principle applies to individuals and governments. When you think about it, following the NAP is basic common sense. If an individual isn’t allowed to take your property, or make you fight his battles, then a government should not be extended those rights - especially since the government is supposed to be ‘of and by the people’. How is that any different than a collection of people being allowed to break the law?
NAP applies to personal interaction but also to property in the form of ‘tax’. That is where ‘Taxation is Theft’ comes from. Many non-libertarians think this catchphrase is silly. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE ROADS!?!?!? They cry, clutching their pearls, hyperventilating that, without stealing someone’s production, roads could not exist. Well, they could. But putting that aside, most libertarians agree that some form of taxation is required. Otherwise, we are in anarchism territory. A government needs some money for basic infrastructure. Libertarians differ on just how much infrastructure is necessary or right. That’s a conversation for another day. But suffice it to say that zero-tax is a pipe dream that nearly all of us know is infeasible. So, to libertarians, a more voluntary tax code is ideal. This means consumption tax. Consumption tax allows you to control how much you want to pay, in many ways. If you spend less, you pay less. It doesn’t punish people for earning money. It doesn’t take their labor and, essentially, make them work for free for several weeks or months in the name of ‘income tax’.
Obviously, NAP also applies to war efforts, violation of civil liberties, etc. This is why most libertarians don’t think we should get involved in conflict unless we have been attacked. Again, this doesn’t mean libertarians do not care about the plight of others. They just, reasonably, question whether out involvement is right, helps, or is within our responsibilities. ‘We have to do something’ is the battle cry of bad foreign policy more often than not, though there are exceptions (like WWII). The violation of civil liberties is a violation of the NAP and libertarians agree that the individual is the most basic minority there is.
2) The individual. In theory, the individual is autonomous, free, and not beholden to the government. In practice, libertarians differ on how this applies to everyday life and politics. Some libertarians look at ‘the individual’ as a refutation of identity politics. They believe that people, at their core, are individuals first, and that ‘group’ or ‘identity’ politics and mentality are detrimental to individual liberties. Conversely, I think that perceptions of certain marginalized groups require that they ‘identify’ together to promote equality for their identity group. In a perfect world, we would all be individuals. In practice, though, the world still sees us in groups. Acting as a group for a common goal need not interfere with the promotion of individual liberties as well. Either way, at the core, the individual is the most likely to have her rights violated as the individual is the most basic minority.
3) Civil Liberties. The vast majority of libertarians believe, deeply, in federal constitutional protections of rights. The Bill of Rights are natural rights, bestowed upon us by merely existing. Any violation of these rights is the government (or in some cases, companies – but that is more rare, and nearly impossible in a free market economy) violating those natural, inherent rights. While localities and states should handle most problems – as they have the most accountability to the people who elect them – a state or locality cannot be allowed to violate any individual's natural rights.
4) Property Rights. For a libertarian, the right to your own property is as serious as your right to free speech, religion, fair trial, etc. Property is property. Taking it without consent is theft – even if someone who was elected with 48% of the vote does it. In my opinion, sales tax or consumption tax should replace it, and government should be limited to work within its means. Federal government should return to its intended role of managing defense, upholding civil liberties, and making sure the union doesn’t collapse and states should take responsibility for themselves.
If a society is responsible for its most vulnerable (and I think it is) it should do so voluntarily with efficient private means. Voting to have the government pick someone else’s pocket is not compassion or morality. It is passing the buck to someone else to do the things you claim to care about. It is using the force of guns to intimidate people into being nice (in the way you describe nice). It is not liberty. Not at all. And if you believe strongly in a particular issue, contribute to it. You will get more for your money in helping others if you do so privately than you ever will through the government. The government is not the only entity that can help. In fact, it’s not even very adept at the task.
5) The Free Market. This is not to be confused with Corporatism, as it almost always is by the left. The free market is literally what it says. It is a market free of government collusion, corruption, intimidation, favorite playing, and regulation. That last one is scariest to most folks. Without government regulation, how will stop baby formula companies from putting crack cocaine in their formula!?!? Well, for one, if a baby died of a drug overdose from drinking Similac, that would put a pretty good dent in Similac’s stock portfolio.
It does a company absolutely zero good to sell you something unsafe that you don’t want. Consumers aren’t as stupid as you think. If they are car shopping and notice one brand’s cars' breaks cut out in 6 months, they probably won’t buy that car. Even if they do, it is because they’ve made a qualified assessment that this is fine. They will pay less for the car now and simply replace the breaks more often. That works better for them.
The very essence of business is to find something that people want, make it, and sell it cheaper than a competitor. This leads not only to better goods for consumers but lower prices. Workers operate in a free market, free to unionize for better representation if they wish, and consumers and producers can interact without the government managing every step of the process. When businesses knowingly act in bad faith, they should face harsh penalties.
But while we are on the topic of regulation ‘protecting’ the consumer, it rarely actually works that way. We are currently living in a time of the most business regulation, by miles, in American history. And yet, the top 1% have gotten richer while everyone else’s wages have not seen such a boost. Corporations are getting bigger while small, local businesses are getting squeezed. The reason is that government regulation of business almost always rewards whoever has the deepest pockets. This is for a number of reasons. 1) Big businesses are usually lobbying for the regulation as an act of protectionism and monopoly building. 2) Big businesses have more capital to institute expensive regulations. Small businesses have much slimmer profit margins. 3) Congressmen and women get direct kickbacks for helping corporations. This is a bipartisan problem. Both do it constantly.
So, while you think those regulations are helping you, they are actually helping grow corporations and make the rich richer. The free market is imperfect but it is, without a doubt, the fairest system there is.
In all these issues, like with any political ideology, there are nuances, exceptions, diverging opinions. But no, we aren’t pro-corporation, anti-rich, selfish children. Most of us have thought long and hard about all of these issues and come up with this system as the fairest and ultimately best political ideology given our priorities. We are no different than Republicans and Democrats except we have to make far fewer excuses for our candidates’ shitty behavior and we don’t hold any power.
