Issue #38
Last Update May 19, 2005
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National Libertarianism - Missing in Action by Gert Innsry The Libertarian movement, and its major organs, the Libertarian Party and the Cato Institute, have long held themselves out to be defenders of the individual against the coercive power of the state. In the past they championed repeal of drug laws, gun ownership unfettered by federal or state regulation, and elimination of government regulation of commerce. It's time to ask whether they are really the practical semi-anarchists they claim to be, or merely Free Market Republicans without conspicuous religious beliefs.
The crucial metric by which they should be evaluated is their response to the Patriot Act, and the actions of the Justice Department and Department of Homeland Security during our current "war on terrorism".
One would think that Libertarian Party spokesmen and women and heavy thinkers from the Cato Institute would be all over the media, decrying excessive governmental powers and the dismantling of our Constitutional protections. Instead, they are nearly invisible; certainly far less visible than that bete noir of the right, the ACLU.
A look at their websites (www.cato.org) is instructive. The website of the Libertarian Party (www.lp.org) has a homepage that features articles on the Brady Gun Law campaign, state budget crises (there aren't any), the persecution of Martha Stewart while Dick Cheney and Terry McAuliffe remain unmolested, and the San Jose Rent Commission. Linking to Issues and Positions, 19 categories are listed. None of them include Civil Liberties, the "war on terror" or any other category relating to the establishment of a police state in the US by Mr. Ashcroft and his cronies. There is a special "War on Terror" page, but it contains nothing written after December, 2001, and very few items even that old viewing with alarm the elimination of Constitutional protections in the name of security. The Libertarian Party press release archive contains a button allowing you to browse by category, but there are no categories for civil liberties or governmental actions in the "war on terror". Presumably, the party has not issued enough press releases on these topics to warrant a category.
The website of the Cato Institute, the leading Libertarian thinktank, is far more critical of government efforts to keep us safe by curtailing our liberty. Their Civil Liberties Topics page under the Terrorism heading lists dozens of studies and papers concerned with this topic. Most of these raise the issues that have been raised frequently in New York Stringer over the past months. Tellingly, however, the headings Television Appearances and Radio Interviews list only four items; one is concerned with a ban on smoking in automobiles, one debates privacy and airline ticketing, and two discuss President Bush's TIPS program. Many of the articles and position papers are well worth reading, however.
Although the Cato Institute thinks the right thoughts, from a public visibility standpoint they are missing in action. If they are serious about their defense of freedom, they need to go public with their concerns and make a noise commensurate with the seriousness of the topic.
In short, the Libertarian Party is useless as a bulwark of liberty (a position I suspect many real Libertarians agree with); the Cato Institute is worth paying attention to, if only they would speak louder. Surely with their access to cable networks and conservative media they could be doing more.
New York Stringer is published by NYStringer.com. For all communications, contact David Katz, Editor and Publisher, at david@nystringer.com
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