24A022 No Through Road by Jim Davies, 6/11/2024

My nearly-two decades in the Libertarian Party were a lot of fun. I learned a great deal and was privileged to meet several luminaries in the freedom movement. This was in Connecticut, where members were an outstanding collection of principled people. A few of them feature in the videos Peter Verderosa and I made around 1990, now on YouTube here. Sadly, several have died since.

Those strong personal qualities were less evident in New Hampshire when I moved there, and before the Century ended I'd had enough of the compromise with principle the members often made. I left the Party, and made it quite clear why: it was barely still libertarian - that is, faithful to the basic tenet each member must sign:

"I certify that I do not believe in the initiation of force to attain social goals."

Nationally, the LP deteriorated much as I'd expected, compromising principle in the hope of gaining votes. In the late Harry Browne it had an outstanding nominee for President, in 1996 and 2000; but after him it went down hill. Michael Badnarik (2004) favored a return to Constitutional rule, even though Spooner had shown it is void of authority and although it permitted a grossly unacceptable degree of government action. Then came Bob Barr and Gary Johnson (twice!) who are Republicans, with some marginal common ground with Libertarians. Disastrous.

Happily, the LP chose better in 2020 with Jo Jorgensen and Spike Cohen, and during the Covid Régime a group in the Party called the "Mises Caucus" set about ending departure from principle, reasoning that the Libertarian nominee should at least be a libertarian! - and under their leadership this year's Nominating Convention was held last month. Some fine candidates competed.

It didn't work. For various reasons the best two (Jacob Hornberger and Dave Smith) were sidelined, and the next best (Michael Rechtenwald) came in second. The winner was Chase Oliver. I think he is a libertarian, but only just; when the government told everyone to stay six feet apart and wear masks, he supported that obscene and useless diktat! The photo shows him campaigning in the colors of the movement that encourages young children to choose their gender, and of the two million people in Gaza who have been dripping with murderous, visceral hatred for Jews for eight decades. He's better than Barr and Johnson, but only just. The LP labored, and brought forth a mouse.

That's happened when the Party is very small. Imagine it grows. Imagine (with ample contrary evidence) that it stays true to its principles while doing so. What then, when it has finally won, with a Libertarian President and a working majority in Congress? What will happen to its fine promises?

As soon as some of them are carried out, displaced government beneficiaries and workers will take to the streets and create chaos - and they will number close to half the population and many will be armed. The probability of civil war will be high. That of extreme discord will be certain. And that will be the result of taking the political route to freedom; for all politics is about defeating the rivals, over-ruling their supporters. It's a bad idea, and the LP may very well founder when it "succeeds."

So next week's ZGBlog will consider two other possible roads to freedom. Neither, of course, involves the use of violence. The whole nature and operation of government is based upon and reeks with violence, from simple tax levies to the monstrous calls to wage war; but ideas and words are the proper way to bring it down.