Libertarian laughs

17 comments on “Libertarian laughs ”

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1. trademark 1

   27 June 2009 at 12:21 pm

   Great stuff. Let’s send Beck and O’Reilly there for a vacation – give them a little perspective.
   Welcome back, The Standard!
   • So Bored 1.1

     27 June 2009 at 12:24 pm

     Its a good go ahead place Somalia, they dont just advertise and wait for tourists, they send out scouts in small boats to find them and bring them in…all that is best in free enterprise.
2. The Sprout 2

   27 June 2009 at 1:11 pm

   Hilarious. that’s the funniest thing I’ve seen in a long while 🙂
3. Quoth the Raven 3

   27 June 2009 at 2:00 pm

   Of course socialism can be without government and many socialists are anti-government. Somalia is very authoriatarian it doesn’t matter where that authoritarianism comes from, criminal gangs, Islamic courts, warlords. Libertarianism is the opposite of authoritarianism to say that Somalia is libertarian is ludicrous. Another little fact is that Somalia, of course, does actually have a government.
   What part of the American government aiding warlords is libertarian? What part of the American government aiding the Ethopians in invading the country libertarian?
   Read this: Let me get this straight. To combat communism in east Africa, the United States propped up a Marxist dictator. After sending troops to battle the warlords, it intervened again to assist the warlords. It did this about-face to stanch the growth of Islamism, but the effect was to put an Islamist group in charge of the country. And after Washington backed an invasion and occupation of the nation to end the Islamic Courts Union’s control, the result was a government run by a former commander of the Islamic Courts Union? You can see why I’m skeptical about a war on the pirates. It’ll probably end with Obama dedicating a 60-foot statue of Blackbeard in the middle of Mogadishu.
   To think that libertarian philosophy is just about the states authoritarianism is ignorant, libertarianism covers authoritarianism in all its forms, family, race, sex, religious etc.
   So in short the video is clearly made by stupid and ignorant people the kind of video if it were made against the labour party you’d rightly condemn.
   • Zetetic 3.1

     27 June 2009 at 2:14 pm

     Somilia’s what you end up with when you don’t have a government – warlords. Libertarians want to get rid of government. So what if it’s the the world the libertarians believe they would get? It’s what they would get.
     • craig 3.1.1

       27 June 2009 at 2:37 pm

       Whereas North Korea is what you end up with when you have big government?
     • craig 3.1.2

       27 June 2009 at 2:38 pm

       Maybe RAM should go set up a Somalia branch?
     • Quoth the Raven 3.1.3

       27 June 2009 at 2:50 pm

       Somalia has a government and warlords. Warlords are just a form of government i.e., they govern. Just like any government they use coercive violence and extra economic power.
       In fact many libertarians, like most right wing libertarians don’t want to get rid of government altogether they just want a limited government.
       I want to get rid of government altogether. Places with governments frequently degenerate into civil war and violent struggles for power so it’s not enough simply to argue that a free society would degenerate into warlords struggling for power and then the imposition of a centralised state – back to what we have.
       Some of the argument’s covered here if you’re interested: I.5.13 Won’t an anarchist society be vulnerable to the power hungry?

       “Anarchy is order, whereas government is civil war.’ – Anselme Bellegarrigue
4. Quoth the Raven 4

   27 June 2009 at 2:07 pm

   I’ll add that most libertarians have nothing against public property. Public property does need to mean state owned property. I’ll also add that the makers of this video have probably never heard of libertarian socialism. So again, the video presents a stupid strawman.
   • the sprout 4.1

     27 June 2009 at 2:19 pm

     I’d also add that you, QoR, have all the humour and social intelligence of Dr Gabrielle Jacobs
     • Quoth the Raven 4.1.1

       27 June 2009 at 3:55 pm

       Dealing in insults instead of arguing. Doing yourself a real service there, sprout.
       • the sprout 4.1.1.1

         27 June 2009 at 7:31 pm

         QED bro, QED.
   • Daveo 4.2

     27 June 2009 at 4:40 pm

     QoT:

     Right-wing libertarians like the sort on the fringes of ACT, National and the Republican Party do have a problem with public property. They believe in complete private provision of goods and services.

     Libertarian socialism is not being critiqued here, comrade. The fact is libertarian socialists would still have public beaches and forms of (democratic, decentralised) government, even if the state as we know it were abolished.

     A libertarian socialist like yourself has virtually nothing in common with right-wing libertarians, whose concern is mostly with the rights of property owners rather than liberty for all.
     • Quoth the Raven 4.2.1

       27 June 2009 at 5:24 pm

       There are some right wing libertarians that are more reasonable than others and I’ve read some of them argue in favour of some public property. There are many that are overly propertarian like Hoppe. All or nearly all libertarians beleive in the complete private provision of goods and services if that means non-state provision it’s just the model of that provision that differs wildly.

       I’m quite pluralist and I think many of the right wing libertarians are kindred spirits They just don’t apply libertarian philsosphy in a wider enough context. Which means they end up with many views that aren’t libertarian. Though the same can be said for many of those who call themselves libertarian socialists or anarcho-communists and such. So myself I feel more akin to anarchism without adjectives.

       For those interested, here’s a good example of applying libertarian philsophy in a wider context: Why We Fight (the Power).
       • George.com 4.2.1.1

         27 June 2009 at 11:26 pm

         Private property – individualist – unfettered free market and rule through market mechanisms liberatrianism
         versus
         collectivist – collective ownership and provision – local democratic and collective determined anarcho-syndicalism.

         Maybe both with minimal government, or at least decentralised government for the red version. Different ideals how society operates however. I have sympathy for broad ideals of anarchist & syndicalism, none whatsoever for libertarianism.
5. David S. 5

   27 June 2009 at 6:26 pm

   While I pretty much agree with what QTR has said, the message of the vid is pretty well aimed at the more popular right wing/anarcho-capitalist/objectivist libertarian movement. Although Somalia obviously isn’t libertarian by any stretches of the imagination, I think the eventual outcome of the policies promoted by that movement would probably resemble a similar level of social degredation.

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1. Capitalism in its wonderful natural form. « The Standard: posted on 7 December 2009 at 7:55 pm

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