The 'Libertarian' Threat

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid calls them anarchists. Sen. John McCain speaks of “libertarian kids” in condescending tones. One thing on which Democrats and Republicans agree is that libertarians represent a threat.

Hyperbole and ridicule aside, one thing is true — libertarians approach questions differently than do Democrats and Republicans. Where the major parties develop “platforms” of issues they support, libertarians begin with a single assumption with which most everyone can agree — all humans are free and equal in dignity by virtue of their being human. Everything else is commentary.

The reason for partisan scorn is that the two-party faithful do not grasp that libertarians don't think in terms of issues. Libertarians think in terms of principles. They begin with the principles of freedom and equality and apply these timeless principles to the issues of the day. What emerges is an extraordinarily civil discourse. The civility arises because libertarians begin at a point of consensus, not a point of contention.

Lest there be any doubt, consider that libertarians as a group agree on very little apart from their first principles. In short, they disagree on how their first principles should be applied in almost all matters. And this is a roadmap for America.

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