A few weeks ago YouTube suggested that I watch a 1988 episode of William F. Buckley’s PBS TV show, “Firing Line,” featuring Ron Paul, who at the time was the Libertarian Party candidate for president. I had to chuckle right at the top when Buckley introduced Rep. Paul by striking an ironic pose: while “libertarians specialize in non-organization…,” Buckley said, “to run for president of the United States, which Dr. Paul is doing on the Libertarian ticket, does require organization, to be sure uncoerced.” (Emphasis added.) Buckley flashed his trademark impish smile while his guest remained silent looking bemused.
Tag: respect
Self-Defense for Men, Firearms for Women
The reason why it is a good idea to teach guys self-defense isn’t about winning fights. It is to instill confidence and make sure to not be an easy target. The reason men get attacked is largely for a display of power and dominance. Ergo, putting up a fight makes the risks higher than the reward. Additionally, if you put up a fight and lose, a certain amount of respect is earned within the aggressive male ecosystem. The problem is, this whole dynamic doesn’t translate to women or children well.
Ol’ Joe Bad’un’s “Executive Actions” against Gun Owners
Domestic enemy and anti-gun bigot criminal Joe Biden (probably under the control of his emotional support pig*) has announced “executive actions” on guns.
The Fraught World of Second-Bests
When discussion turns to how to make government “better,” however any particular person would conceive that condition, libertarians understand that we are in the fraught world of second-bests. In other words, because of the nature of the state, no solution that merely attempts to reform it will be or could be truly satisfying. The system will continue to feature exploitation, rent-seeking, public-choice and knowledge problems, and worse.
Where Property Rights Begin
Your bodily autonomy– no matter where you stand– is the beginning of property rights, but not necessarily the end. Hopefully, your property rights don’t end there, but for some people, they do.
On Individualism
I’m reading a terrific anthology of individualist thought edited by George H. Smith and Marilyn Moore. One essay was written by Oscar Wilde and focuses on individualism being the least selfish among alternatives. Let me put it this way: I am an individualist first, voluntaryist second.
Targeted Advertising Violates No Liberty
The point is that when advertisers acquire information about potential customers and narrow the pool, they benefit others besides themselves. We need not start off suspicious of such a practice. One thing markets do best is produce information, and generally speaking, access to consumer information is a good… What’s the bigger threat: a company that buys information we’ve given up in order to sell us things, or the state, which ultimately seeks to control us?
Gender and Medicine: Two Questions for Arkansas Legislators
As I write this column, Arkansas House Bill 1570 (the “Save Adolescents From Experimentation Act”) awaits the signature or veto of Governor Asa Hutchinson, having passed in the state House on March 10 and in the Senate on March 29. If it became law, the bill would forbid physicians and other healthcare professionals to ” provide gender transition procedures to any individual under eighteen (18) years of age” or to refer such an individual to other healthcare providers for such procedures.
Businesspeople Earn Every Penny
What motivates businesspeople? While the full answer is complex, the basic answer is clear: Money. People run businesses to get richer – and ideally, to get rich. And whenever I get a small taste of the challenges businesspeople overcome, not to mention the disrespect they endure in our society, I have to say that businesspeople earn every penny.
Gender Inequality Isn’t the Problem With the Draft
While draft registration does involve unequal treatment of men and women, the larger issue is Selective Service registration itself.