Has the definition of libertarian been changed?
I just looked up some history on Bob Barr, the 2008 Libertarian Party candidate for president. Wikipedia lists the following tidbits about him:
- authored the Defense of Marriage Act, defining marriage as between a man and a woman
- voted for the patriot act, authorizing unprecedented levels of unsupervised federal surveillance powers, (but now regrets voting for it)
- advocated complete federal prohibition of medical marijuana (but now favors allowing medical marijuana)
- proposed that the US military ban the practice of Wicca in its ranks
These do not look like the votes of a libertarian candidate. This is possibly the worst Libertarian candidate for president since I’ve been aware of the party. I won’t be voting for him.
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5 comments:
Bravo, the "leaders" of the Libertarian party allowed Barr onto the team because he represented a big fish for them. They think they can get some publicity from this stunt. Real Libertarians will not benifit from the likes of Bob Barr. My wasted vote is going to Ron Paul. At least Dr. No the Libertarian leaning candidate is closer to the type of person we need in office. p.s. I have been enjoying your blog since I found out you beat me to the naming game.
Believe what you will, but Bod Barr is the best of the "don't have a chance" candidates. The only choice that matters is between dumb and dumber. Take your pick as to which one is which. A good claim can be made in both cases.
That proves my point, nemo. If you favor the guy, that means he's more of a republican than a libertarian.
I don't see why the LP would do that. When you're a party with no chance to win, all you've got is your principles. Why sell out for a better loss?
Why sell out for a better loss? The answer, as always in politics, is follow the money. If the libertarians can get past 5% of the vote, they qualify for Federal funds next time around. Hypocrites? If you dig deep enough into any political party, most times not so deep, you can find hypocrisy.
I am somewhat taken aback at your use of the pejorative "Republican" (pronounced "Democrat-Lite"). I'm closer to a Realistic Libertarian. As in Sheepshead, if you are dealt a bad hand, sometime it's best to play for schneider.
Realistic Libertarian, hmmm? OK, if you say so.
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