Libertarianism

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Libertarianism is a term used by a broad spectrum[1] of political philosophies which seek to maximize individual liberty[2] and minimize or abolish the state.[3] There are a number of libertarian view points, ranging from anarchist to small government, and from anti-property to pro-property.[4][5][6] The word libertarian is an antonym of authoritarian.[7]

Contents

[edit] Origins

The term libertarian in a metaphysical or philosophical sense was first used by late-Enlightenment free-thinkers to refer to those who believed in free will, as opposed to determinism.[8] Libertarianism in this sense is still encountered in metaphysics in discussions of free will. The first recorded use was in 1789 by William Belsham in a discussion of free will and in opposition to "necessitarian" (or determinist) views.[9][10] Metaphysical and philosophical contrasts between philosophies of necessity and libertarianism continued in the early 19th century.[11]

[edit] Political usage

The first anarchist journal to use "libertarian" was Le Libertaire: Journal du Mouvement Social[12] published in New York between 1858 and 1861 by French communist-anarchist Joseph Déjacque.[13] It was later popularized in France in the 1890s in order to counter and evade the anti-anarchist laws known as the lois scélérates.[citation needed] According to the anarchist historian Max Nettlau, the first use of the term libertarian communism was in November 1880, when a French anarchist congress employed it to more clearly identify its doctrines.[14] The French anarchist journalist Sébastien Faure, later founder and editor of the four-volume Anarchist Encyclopedia, started the weekly paper Le Libertaire (The Libertarian) in 1895.[15]

In the meantime, in the United States, libertarianism as a synonym for anarchism had begun to take hold. The anarchist communist geographer and social theorist Peter Kropotkin wrote in his seminal 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica article Anarchism that:

It would be impossible to represent here, in a short sketch, the penetration, on the one hand, of anarchist ideas into modern literature, and the influence, on the other hand, which the libertarian ideas of the best contemporary writers have exercised upon the development of anarchism.[16]

Today many anarcho-communist, libertarian socialist, and other left-libertarian movements worldwide continue to describe themselves as "libertarians." These philosophies are opposed to most or all forms of private property and their proponents tend to call pro-property libertarians "propertarians".[17]

[edit] Usage by pro-property movements

See also: History of classical liberalism
Individualism
v • d • e

Enlightenment ideas of individual liberty, constitutionally limited government, and reliance on the institutions of civil society and a free market to promote social order and economic prosperity were the basis of what became known in the 19th century as liberalism.[18] While it kept that meaning in most of the world, modern liberalism in the United States began to take a more statist viewpoint. Over time, those who held to the earlier liberal views began to call themselves market liberals, classical liberals or libertarians.[19] (Some limited government advocates still use the term "libertarianism" almost interchangeably with the term classical liberalism.)[20][21] While conservatism in Europe continued to mean conserving hierarchical class structures through state control of society and the economy, some conservatives in the United States began to refer to conserving traditions of liberty. This was especially true of the Old Right, who opposed the New Deal and U.S. military interventions in World War I and World War II.[22][23]

Later, the Austrian School of economics also had a powerful impact on both economic teaching and classical liberal and libertarian principles.[24][25] It influenced economists and political philosophers and theorists including Henry Hazlitt, Hans-Hermann Hoppe, Israel Kirzner, Murray Rothbard, Walter Block and Richard M. Ebeling. The Austrian School was in turn influenced by Frederic Bastiat.[26][27]

Starting in the 1930s and continuing until today, a group of central European economists led by Austrians Ludwig von Mises and Friedrich Hayek identified the collectivist underpinnings to the various new socialist and fascist doctrines of government power as being different brands of totalitarianism.

In the 1940s, Leonard Read began calling himself libertarian.[8] In 1955, Dean Russell wrote an article in the Foundation for Economic Education magazine pondering what to call those, such as himself, who subscribed to the classical liberal philosophy. He suggested: "Let those of us who love liberty trademark and reserve for our own use the good and honorable word "libertarian.""[28]

Ayn Rand's international best sellers The Fountainhead (1943) and Atlas Shrugged (1957) and her books about her philosophy of Objectivism influenced modern libertarianism.[29] For a number of years after the publication of her books, people promoting a libertarian philosophy continued to call it individualism.[30] Two other women also published influential pro-freedom books in 1943, Rose Wilder Lane’s The Discovery of Freedom and Isabel Paterson’s The God of the Machine.[31]

According to libertarian publisher Robert W. Poole, Arizona United States Senator Barry Goldwater's message of individual liberty, economic freedom, and anti-communism also had a major impact on the libertarian movement, both with the publication of his book The Conscience of a Conservative and with his run for president in 1964.[32] Goldwater's speech writer, Karl Hess, became a leading libertarian writer and activist.[33]

The Cold War mentality of military interventionism, which had supplanted Old Right non-interventionism, was promoted by conservatives like William F. Buckley and accepted by many libertarians, with Murray Rothbard being a notable dissenter.[34] However, the Vietnam War split the uneasy alliance between growing numbers of self-identified libertarians, anarcho-libertarians, and more traditional conservatives who believed in limiting liberty to uphold moral virtues. Libertarians opposed to the war joined the draft resistance and peace movements and organisations such as Students for a Democratic Society. They began founding their own publications, like Murray Rothbard's The Libertarian Forum and organizations like the Radical Libertarian Alliance. The split was aggravated at the 1969 Young Americans for Freedom convention, when more than 300 libertarians organized to take control of the organization from conservatives. The burning of a draft card in protest to a conservative proposal against draft resistance sparked physical confrontations among convention attendees, a walkout by a large number of libertarians, the creation of libertarian organizations like the Society for Individual Liberty, and efforts to recruit potential libertarians from conservative organizations.[35] The split was finalized in 1971 when conservative leader William F. Buckley, in a 1971 New York Times article, attempted to divorce libertarianism from the freedom movement. He wrote: "The ideological licentiousness that rages through America today makes anarchy attractive to the simple-minded. Even to the ingeniously simple-minded."[31]

In 1971, David Nolan and a few friends formed the Libertarian Party.[36] Attracting former Democrats, Republicans and independents, it has run a presidential candidate every election year since 1972, including John Hospers (1972), Ed Clark (1980), Ron Paul (1988), Harry Browne (1996 and 2000), Michael Badnarik (2004), and Bob Barr (2008). By 2006, polls showed that 15 percent of American voters identified themselves as libertarian.[37] Over the years, dozens of libertarian political parties have been formed worldwide. Educational organizations like the Center for Libertarian Studies and the Cato Institute were formed in the 1970s, and others have been created since then.[38]

Philosophical libertarianism gained a significant measure of recognition in academia with the publication of Harvard University professor Robert Nozick's Anarchy, State, and Utopia in 1974. The book won a National Book Award in 1975.[39] According to libertarian essayist Roy Childs, "Nozick's Anarchy, State, and Utopia single-handedly established the legitimacy of libertarianism as a political theory in the world of academia."[40]

[edit] Libertarian principles

According to the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy:

Libertarians are committed to the belief that individuals, and not states or groups of any other kind, are both ontologically and normatively primary; that individuals have rights against certain kinds of forcible interference on the part of others; that liberty, understood as non-interference, is the only thing that can be legitimately demanded of others as a matter of legal or political right; that robust property rights and the economic liberty that follows from their consistent recognition are of central importance in respecting individual liberty; that social order is not at odds with but develops out of individual liberty; that the only proper use of coercion is defensive or to rectify an error; that governments are bound by essentially the same moral principles as individuals; and that most existing and historical governments have acted improperly insofar as they have utilized coercion for plunder, aggression, redistribution, and other purposes beyond the protection of individual liberty.[4]

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy states "libertarianism holds that agents initially fully own themselves and have moral powers to acquire property rights in external things under certain conditions." It notes that libertarianism is not a “right-wing” doctrine because of its opposition to laws restricting adult consensual sexual relationships and drug use, and its opposition to imposing religious views or practices and compulsory military service. However, it notes that there is a version known as “left-libertarianism” which also endorses full self-ownership, but "differs on unappropriated natural resources (land, air, water, etc.)." "Right-libertarianism" holds that such resources may be appropriated by individuals. "Left-libertarianism" holds that they belong to everyone and must be distributed in some egalitarian manner.[1]

While the traditional political “left-right” spectrum is a line, the Nolan chart, created by David Nolan, is a plane, situating libertarianism in a wider gamut of political thought.

Like many libertarians, Leonard Read rejected the concepts of "left" and "right" libertarianism, calling them "authoritarian."[41] Libertarian author and politician Harry Browne wrote: "We should never define Libertarian positions in terms coined by liberals or conservatives – nor as some variant of their positions. We are not fiscally conservative and socially liberal. We are Libertarians, who believe in individual liberty and personal responsibility on all issues at all times. You can depend on us to treat government as the problem, not the solution."[42]

Isaiah Berlin's 1958 essay "Two Concepts of Liberty" described a difference between negative liberty which limits the power of the state to interfere and positive liberty in which a paternalistic state helps individuals achieve self-realization and self-determination. He believed these were rival and incompatible interpretations of liberty and held that demands for positive liberty lead to authoritarianism. This view has been adopted by many libertarians including Robert Nozick and Murray Rothbard.[43]

Libertarians contrast two ethical views: consequentialist libertarianism, which is the support for liberty because it leads to favorable consequences, such as prosperity or efficiency and deontological libertarianism (also known as "rights-theorist libertarianism," "natural rights libertarianism," or "libertarian moralism") which consider moral tenets to be the basis of libertarian philosophy. Others combine a hybrid of consequentialist and deontologist thinking.[44]

Another view, contractarian libertarianism, holds that any legitimate authority of government derives not from the consent of the governed, but from contract or mutual agreement. Robert Nozick holds a variation on this view, as does Jan Narveson as outlined in his 1988 work The Libertarian Idea and his 2002 work Respecting Persons in Theory and Practice. Other advocates of contractarian libertarianism include the Nobel Laureate and founder of the public choice school of economics James M. Buchanan, Canadian philosopher David Gauthier and Hungarian-French philosopher Anthony de Jasay.[45][46][47]

Generally, libertarians focus on the rights of the individual to act in accordance with the individual's own subjective values,[48] and argue that the coercive actions of the state are often (or even always) an impediment to the efficient realization of individual desires and values.[49][50] Libertarians also maintain that what is immoral for the individual must necessarily be immoral for all state agents and that the state should not be above the law.[51][52]

[edit] Libertarianism and anarchism

Main article: Anarchism

Anarchism is a political philosophy encompassing many theories and traditions, all opposed to coercion of individuals, especially by government. Although anarchism is usually considered to be a left-wing ideology, it always has included individualists – including anarcho-capitalists – who support pro-property and market-oriented economic structures. Anarchists may support anything from extreme individualism to complete collectivism.

Anarcho-capitalist Murray Rothbard has warned that the term anarchism refers to two schools of thought, the left-anarchism and the individualist anarchism.[53] Left-anarchism, as Rothbard exemplified, consists of anarcho-communism and syndicalism. He noted that, as Austrian School libertarians differ significantly in economics from the left-anarchists, most 19th century individualist anarchism never identified themselves as such. While Rothbard considers Tuckerite anarchism as a genuine form of libertarianism, Rothbard preferred the term libertarianism over anarchism due to the negative connotations of the latter.

[edit] Non-propertarian libertarianism

[edit] Libertarian socialism

Main article: Libertarian socialism

Libertarian socialism aims to create a society in which all violent or coercive institutions would be dissolved, and in their place every person would have free, equal access to tools of information and production, or a society in which such coercive institutions and hierarchies were drastically reduced in scope.[54]

This equality and freedom would be achieved through the abolition of authoritarian institutions such as an individual's right to own private property,[55] in order that direct control of the means of production and resources will be gained by the working class and society as a whole.

Political philosophies commonly described as libertarian socialist include: most varieties of anarchism (especially anarchist communism, anarchist collectivism, anarcho-syndicalism[56]), social ecology,[57] and council communism.[58]

[edit] Left-libertarianism

Main article: Left-libertarianism

Left-libertarianism is usually regarded as doctrine that has an egalitarian view concerning natural resources, believing that it is not legitimate for someone to claim private ownership of resources to the detriment of others.[1][59][60] Most left libertarians support some form of income redistribution on the grounds of a claim by each individual to be entitled to an equal share of natural resources.[60] Left libertarianism is defended by contemporary theorists such as Peter Vallentyne, Hillel Steiner, Michael Otsuka, and Noam Chomsky.[61] The term is sometimes used as a synonym for libertarian socialism.[62]

[edit] Geolibertarianism

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Main article: Geolibertarianism

Geolibertarianism is a political movement that strives to reconcile libertarianism and Georgism (or geoism).[63] Geolibertarians are advocates of geoism, which is the position that all land is a common asset to which all individuals have an equal right to access, and therefore if individuals claim the land as their property they must pay rent to the community for doing so. Rent need not be paid for the mere use of land, but only for the right to exclude others from that land, and for the protection of one's title by government. They simultaneously agree with the libertarian position that each individual has an exclusive right to the fruits of his or her labor as their private property, as opposed to this product being owned collectively by society or the community, and that "one's labor, wages, and the products of labor" should not be taxed. In agreement with traditional libertarians they advocate "full civil liberties, with no crimes unless there are victims who have been invaded."[63] Geolibertarians generally advocate distributing the land rent to the community via a land value tax, as proposed by Henry George and others before him. For this reason, they are often called "single taxers". Fred E. Foldvary coined the word "geo-libertarianism" in an article so titled in Land and Liberty, May/June 1981, pp. 53-55. In the case of geoanarchism, the voluntary form of geolibertarianism as described by Foldvary, rent would be collected by private associations with the opportunity to secede from a geocommunity (and not receive the geocommunity's services) if desired.

[edit] Mutualism

Main article: Mutualism (economic theory)

Mutualism, as a libertarian socialist[64][65][66] free-market anarchist school of thought, can be traced to the writings of Pierre-Joseph Proudhon that envisioned a society where each person might possess a means of production either individually or collectively, with trade representing equivalent amounts of labor. Integral to the scheme was the establishment of a mutual credit bank which would lend to producers at a minimal interest rate only high enough to cover the costs of administration.[67] Mutualism is based on a labor theory of value which holds that when labor or its product is sold, it ought to receive in exchange, goods or services embodying "the amount of labor necessary to produce an article of exactly similar and equal utility"[68] (receiving anything less is considered exploitation, theft of labor, or "usury"). Some mutualists believe that if the state did not intervene, economic law would ensure that individuals receive no more income than that in proportion to the amount of labor they exert.[69] Mutualists oppose the idea of individuals receiving an income through loans, investments, and rent, as they believe these individuals are not laboring. Some of them hold that if state intervention ceased, these types of incomes would disappear.[70] Though Proudhon opposed this type of income, he expressed: "... I never meant to ... forbid or suppress, by sovereign decree, ground rent and interest on capital. I believe that all these forms of human activity should remain free and optional for all."[71]

[edit] Propertarian libertarianism

[edit] Anarcho-capitalism and market anarchism

Main articles: Market anarchism and Anarcho-capitalism

Anarcho-capitalism is an individualist anarchist[72] political philosophy that advocates the elimination of the state and the elevation of the sovereign individual in a free market. In an anarcho-capitalist society, law enforcement, courts, and all other security services are provided by voluntarily-funded competitors such as private defense agencies rather than through compulsory taxation. Because personal and economic activities are regulated by the natural laws of the market through private law rather than through politics, victimless crimes and crimes against the state would be rendered moot.

Anarcho-capitalists argue for a society based in voluntary trade of private property (including money, consumer goods, land, and capital goods) and services in order to maximize individual liberty and prosperity, but also recognize charity and communal arrangements as part of the same voluntary ethic.[73] Though anarcho-capitalists are known for asserting a right to private (individualized or joint non-public) property, some propose that non-state public/community property can also exist in an anarcho-capitalist society.[74] For them, what is important is that it is acquired and transferred without help or hindrance from the compulsory state. Market anarchists believe that the only just, and/or most economically-beneficial, way to acquire property is through voluntary trade, gift, or labor-based original appropriation, rather than through aggression or fraud.[75]

Beyond their agreeing that security should be privately provided by market-based entities, proponents of free-market anarchism differ in other details and aspects of their philosophies, particularly justification, tactics and property rights.

Murray Rothbard and other natural rights theorists hold strongly to the central non-aggression axiom, while other free-market anarchists such as David D. Friedman utilize consequentialist theories such as utilitarianism.[76] Agorists, anarcho-capitalists of the Rothbardian tradition, and voluntaryists are propertarian market anarchists who consider property rights to be natural rights deriving from the primary right of self-ownership.

Market anarchists have varying views on how to go about eliminating the state. Rothbard advocates the use of any non-immoral tactic available to bring about liberty.[77] Agorists – followers of the philosophy of Samuel Edward Konkin III[78] – propose to eliminate the state by practising tax resistance and by the use illegal black market strategies called counter-economics until the security functions of the state can be replaced by free market competitors.

[edit] Left-libertarianism

Main article: Left-libertarianism

Some members of the U.S. libertarian movement, including the late Samuel Edward Konkin III[79] and Roderick T. Long,[80] generally support property rights. However they identify themselves as "left" because they oppose intellectual property,[81] and advocate strong alliances with the Left on issues such as the anti-war movement[82] and support for labor unions.[83][84] Some wish to revive voluntary cooperative ideas such as mutualism.[85]

[edit] Minarchism

Main article: Minarchism

Minarchism refers to the belief in a state limited to police forces, courts, and a military. In minarchism, the state neither regulates nor intervenes in personal choices and business practices, except to protect against aggression, breach of contract, and fraud.[86][87] Minarchists therefore support free markets and the maximization of economic freedom. In personal matters, minarchists advocate a civil libertarian creed tolerant of various lifestyles and the legalization of victimless crimes. Prominent minarchists include Ludwig von Mises, Friedrich Hayek, Harry Browne and Michael Badnarik.

Both market anarchists and minarchists oppose victimless crimes, the Drug War, compulsory education, and conscription on all levels of government.[87] However, minarchists often disagree with each other on the level of government centralization. This ranges from the centralist minarchists who support the enforcement of laws at the global or national governments, to the middle-ground minarchists who advocate states' rights or increased autonomy at the state level, and to the decentralist minarchists who think that every city or town should have its own government. Such proponents of extreme decentralization include Albert Jay Nock,[88] Carol Moore, and Jeffersonian republicans.[88]

[edit] Libertarian conservatism

Main article: Libertarian conservatism

Libertarian conservatism, also known as conservative libertarianism (and sometimes called right-libertarianism), describes certain political ideologies which attempt to meld libertarian and conservative ideas, often called "fusionism."[89][90] Anthony Gregory writes that right, or conservative, "libertarianism can refer to any number of varying and at times mutually exclusive political orientations" such as being "interested mainly in 'economic freedoms'"; following the "conservative lifestyle of right-libertarians"; seeking "others to embrace their own conservative lifestyle"; considering big business "as a great victim of the state"; favoring a "strong national defense"; and having "an Old Right opposition to empire."[91]

Conservatives hold that shared values, morals, standards, and traditions are necessary for social order while libertarians consider individual liberty as the highest value.[92] Laurence M. Vance writes: "Some libertarians consider libertarianism to be a lifestyle rather than a political philosophy... They apparently don’t know the difference between libertarianism and libertinism."[93] However, Edward Feser emphasizes that libertarianism does not require individuals to reject traditional conservative values.[89]

Paleolibertarianism, neolibertarianism, and constitutionalism consist as the branches of libertarian conservatism. Some libertarian conservatives in the United States, known as libertarian constitutionalists, believe that the way to limit government is to enforce the United States Constitution.[94] However, Constitutionalists and neolibertarians do not differ much, other than their disagreement on foreign policy. Both Constitutionalists and neolibertarians describe themselves as "small government conservatives."

[edit] Paleolibertarianism

Main article: Paleolibertarianism

Paleolibertarianism, also known as "New Fusionism",[95] is a school of thought devised by Lew Rockwell and late Murray Rothbard. Closely associated with the Austrian School of economics, most paleolibertarians identify as anarcho-capitalist. Though they advocate the elimination of the state, paleolibertarians disagree with other libertarians on reforming the state, such as illegal immigration and the legitimacy of state property.[96]

On cultural issues, paleolibertarians hold a culturally conservative stance. However, unlike paleoconservatives, paleolibertarians stand against state enforcement of morality. Libertarian theorists who describe themselves as paleolibertarian include Hans-Hermann Hoppe, Lew Rockwell, Thomas Woods, Thomas DiLorenzo, and Stephan Kinsella. In general, most staff members in the Ludwig von Mises Institute and LewRockwell.com identify as paleolibertarian.[97]

Individualist anarchist Keith Preston has critiqued paleolibertarianism for promoting Eurocentrism, Christianity, and family values.[98]

[edit] Neolibertarianism

 This article needs references that appear in reliable third-party publications. Primary sources or sources affiliated with the subject are generally not sufficient for a Wikipedia article. Please add more appropriate citations from reliable sources. (March 2009)

Neolibertarianism is an American political philosophy combining elements of right-libertarian and neoconservative thought that urges domestic incrementalism and interventionist foreign policy based on self-interest and/or purported national defense. It has similarities to but is not synonymous with neoconservatism. Neolibertarians advocate maximizing civil liberties while upholding national security objectives. [99] [100] Domestically, neolibertarians embrace incrementalism to achieve libertarian small government goals. [101]

[edit] Constitutionalism

In the United States, constitutionalism is a political philosophy which advocates the maximization of civil and economic liberties. As opponents of a large federal government, constitutionalists strongly advocate the anti-federalist notion of states' rights and decreased federal control and spending. In addition, they affirm the old right tradition of a non-interventionist foreign policy. On moral issues, however, constitutionalists range from total social conservatism, to leaving those issues at the state or local level.[102] In general, constitutionalists patronize the constitutional republic as their ideal model of government.

There exist several factions of constitutionalism. The paleoconservatism faction endorses preserving domestic culture and family values, but protectionism against foreign imports. Another faction, as put forward by the Ron Paul movement, advocates Austrian economics and the elimination of the Federal Reserve.[102][103] Still, another variant, held by Alex Jones supporters, has a conspiracy theorist tilt.[citation needed]

Market anarchists, however, critique constitutionalism for its periodic failure to check the growth of government power.[104][105]

[edit] Objectivism

Main article: Libertarianism and Objectivism

Libertarianism's status is in dispute among those who style themselves Objectivists (Objectivism is the name novelist Ayn Rand gave her philosophy). Though elements of Rand's philosophy have been adopted by libertarianism, Objectivists (including Rand herself) have condemned libertarianism as a threat to freedom and capitalism. In particular, it has been claimed that libertarians use Objectivist ideas "with the teeth pulled out of them".[106][107]

Conversely, some libertarians see Objectivists as dogmatic, unrealistic, and uncompromising (Objectivists do not see the last as a negative attribute). According to Reason editor Nick Gillespie in the magazine's March 2005 issue focusing on Objectivism's influence, Rand is "one of the most important figures in the libertarian movement... Rand remains one of the best-selling and most widely influential figures in American thought and culture" in general and in libertarianism in particular. Still, he confesses that he is embarrassed by his magazine's association with her ideas. In the same issue, Cathy Young says that "Libertarianism, the movement most closely connected to Rand's ideas, is less an offspring than a rebel stepchild." Though they reject what they see as Randian dogmas, libertarians like Young still believe that "Rand's message of reason and liberty... could be a rallying point" for libertarianism.

Objectivists reject the oft-heard libertarian refrain that state and government are "necessary evils": for them, a government limited to protection of its citizens' rights is absolutely necessary and moral. Objectivists are opposed to all anarchist currents and are suspicious of libertarians' lineage with individualist anarchism.[108]

[edit] Libertarian transhumanism

Main article: Libertarian Transhumanism

Libertarian transhumanism advocates free market individualism as the best vehicle of technological progress and the integration of libertarianism and Transhumanism.

[edit] Current libertarian movements

"See also" categories: Libertarianism by country, Libertarians by nationality, Libertarian think tanks, Libertarian publications, and Libertarian parties

[edit] Europe

In France, Liberté chérie ("Cherished Liberty") is a pro-liberty think tank and activist association formed in 2003. Liberté chérie gained significant publicity when it managed to draw 30,000 Parisians into the streets to demonstrate against government employees who were striking.[109][110]

In Germany, a "Libertäre Plattform in der FDP" ("Liberty Caucus within the Free Democratic Party") was founded in 2005.

In Italy The Nonviolent Radical Party.

The Russian Libertarian Movement (Rossiyskoye Libertarianskoye Dvizhenie, RLD; 2003-2006) was a short-lived political party in the Russian Federation, formed by members of the Institute of Natiology (Moscow), a libertarian think-tank. After electoral failure and government failure, it disbanded.

[edit] Iceland

The Libertarian Society of Iceland (Frjálshyggjufélagið) is the only active libertarian organization in Iceland.[citation needed]

[edit] Canada

"See also" category: Libertarianism in Canada

[edit] New Zealand

"See also" category: Libertarianism in New Zealand

[edit] United Kingdom

"See also" category: Libertarianism in the United Kingdom
Main article: Libertarianism in the United Kingdom

The Libertarian Alliance was an early libertarian educational group. It was followed by British think tanks such as the Adam Smith Institute. A British Libertarian Party was founded on January 1, 2008.

[edit] Australia

"See also" category: Libertarianism in Australia

The Liberty and Democracy Party is the main libertarian political party in Australia. It was founded in 2001, running in the 2001 and 2004 ACT elections, before registering as a federal political party and contesting the 2007 federal election. Australia also has a small Libertarian Party, but it is not registered with the Australian Electoral Commission[111].

[edit] United States

"See also" categories: Libertarianism in the United States and American libertarians

Well known libertarian organizations include the Center for Libertarian Studies, the Cato Institute, the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE), the International Society for Individual Liberty (ISIL) and the Ludwig von Mises Institute. The Libertarian Party of the United States is the world's first such party.

The activist Free State Project, formed in 2001, works to bring 20,000 libertarians to the state of New Hampshire to influence state policy. In March 2009, the project website showed that more than 650 were resident there and more than 9,150 had pledged to move there.[112] Less successful similar projects include the Free West Alliance and Free State Wyoming. (There is also a European Free State Project.)

Texas congressman Ron Paul's campaign for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination was largely oriented towards libertarianism. Paul is affiliated with the libertarian-leaning Republican Liberty Caucus and founded the Campaign for Liberty, a libertarian-leaning membership and lobbying organization.

[edit] Latin America

Costa Rica's Movimiento Libertario (Libertarian Movement) is a libertarian party that holds 9% of the seats in Costa Rica's national assembly. Brazil's Partido Libertários is a nascent libertarian party.

[edit] See also

Sister project Look up libertarian in
Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry on Libertarianism, Stanford University, July 24, 2006 version.
  2. ^ "libertarian", Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/libertarianism 
  3. ^ Professor Brian Martin, Eliminating state crime by abolishing the state; Murray Rothbard, Do You Hate the State?, The Libertarian Forum, Vol. 10, No. 7, July 1977; Libertarian Does Not Equal Libertine; What Libertarianism Isn't; A Libertarian Cheat Sheet by Wilton D. Alston; Myth and Truth About Libertarianism Murrary Rothbard; Do You Consider Yourself a Libertarian?
  4. ^ a b Zwolinski, Matt, "Libertarianism", Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, http://www.iep.utm.edu/l/libertar.htm, retrieved on 2008-08-09 
  5. ^ Paul, Ellen Frankel & Miller, Fred Dycus. Freedom of Speech: Volume 21, Part 2. Cambridge University Press, 2004, 45; Sciabarra, Chris Mathew. Total Freedom: Toward a Dialectical Libertarianism. Penn State Press, 2000, 193; Ward, Colin. Anarchism: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press 2004, 62; Goodway, David. Anarchists Seed Beneath the Snow. Liverpool Press. 2006, 4; Skirda, Alexandre.Facing the Enemy: A History of Anarchist Organization from Proudhon to May 1968. AK Press 2002, 183; MacDonald, Dwight & Wreszin, Michael. Interviews with Dwight Macdonald. University Press of Mississippi, 2003, 82; Bufe, Charles. The Heretic's Handbook of Quotations. See Sharp Press, 1992. p. iv; Gay, Kathlyn. Encyclopedia of Political Anarchy. ABC-CLIO / University of Michigan, 2006, 126; Woodcock, George. Anarchism: A History of Libertarian Ideas and Movements. Broadview Press, 2004.
  6. ^ Hans-Hermann Hoppe's Anarcho-Capitalism: An Annotated Bibliography presents a long list of individuals who use both terms.
  7. ^ "Authoritarian", Student Britannica, http://student.britannica.com/comptons/thesaurus?va=authoritarian 
  8. ^ a b David Boaz, Libertarianism: A Primer, Free Press, 1998, 22-25.
  9. ^ William Belsham, "Essays", printed for C. Dilly, 1789; original from the University of Michigan, digitized May 21, 2007.
  10. ^ Oxford English Dictionary definition of libertarianism
  11. ^ Jared Sparks, Collection of Essays and Tracts in Theology, from Various Authors, with Biographical and Critical Notices, published by Oliver Everett, 13 Cornhill, 1824.
  12. ^ Le Libertaire—all editions online
  13. ^ Nettlau, Max (1996). A Short History of Anarchism. Freedom Press. p. 75-6. ISBN 0900384891. 
  14. ^ Nettlau, Max (1996). A Short History of Anarchism. Freedom Press. p. 145. ISBN 0900384891. 
  15. ^ Nettlau, Max (1996). A Short History of Anarchism. Freedom Press. p. 162. ISBN 0900384891. 
  16. ^ Peter Kropotkin, "Anarchism" 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica.
  17. ^ Iain McKay, "150 years of (the word) libertarian", Freedom (vol. 69, No. 23-4)
  18. ^ Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
  19. ^ The Achievements of Nineteenth-Century Classical Liberalism, Cato Institute, Cato University home study course module 10.
  20. ^ Raimondo Cubeddu, preface to "Perspectives of Libertarianism", Etica e Politica (Università di Trieste) V, no. 2 (2003). "It is often difficult to distinguish between 'Libertarianism' and 'Classical Liberalism.' Those two labels are used almost interchangeably by those whom we may call libertarians of a minarchist persuasion: scholars who, following Locke and Nozick, believe a state is needed in order to achieve effective protection of property rights."
  21. ^ Steffen W. Schmidt, American Government and Politics Today (Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth, 2004), 17.
  22. ^ Murray Rothbard, The Libertarian Heritage: The American Revolution and Classical Liberalism, excerpted from the first chapter of For a New Liberty: The Libertarian Manifesto, at LewRockwell.com.
  23. ^ Murray Rothbard, The Life and Death of the Old Right, first published in the September 1990 issue of The Rothbard-Rockwell Report, at LewRockwell.com.
  24. ^ What is Austrian Economics?, Ludwig Von Mises Institute.
  25. ^ Richard M. Ebeling, Austrian Economics and the Political Economy of Freedom, Edward Elgar Publishing, 2003, 163-179 ISBN 1840649402, 9781840649406.
  26. ^ DiLorenzo, Thomas. "Frederic Bastiat (1801-1850): Between the French and Marginalist Revolutions." Mises.org|http://www.mises.org/fredericbastiat.asp
  27. ^ http://www.mises.org/journals/scholar/BastiatAustrian.pdf|Thornton, Mark. "Frédéric Bastiat as an Austrian Economist." Mises.org.
  28. ^ Russell, Dean. Who is a Libertarian?, Foundation for Economic Education, "Ideas on Liberty," May, 1955.
  29. ^ [[Brian Doherty (journalist)|]], Ayn Rand at 100: "Yours Is the Glory", Cato Institute Policy Report Vol. XXVII No. 2 (March/April 2005).
  30. ^ Lee Edwards, Ph.D., The Conservative Consensus: Frank Meyer, Barry Goldwater, and the Politics of Fusionism, Heritage Foundation issue paper, January 22, 2007.
  31. ^ a b Jude Blanchette, What Libertarians and Conservatives Say About Each Other: An Annotated Bibliography, LewRockwell.com, October 27, 2004.
  32. ^ Robert Poole, In memoriam: Barry Goldwater - Obituary, Reason Magazine, August-Sept, 1998.
  33. ^ Hess, Karl. The Death of Politics, Interview in Playboy, July 1976.
  34. ^ Murray Rothbard, The Early 1960s: From Right to Left, excerpt from chapter 13 of Murray Rothbard The Betrayal of the American Right, Ludwig von Mises Institute, 2007.
  35. ^ Rebecca E. Klatch, A Generation Divided: The New Left, the New Right, and the 1960s, University of California Press, 1999 ISBN 0520217144, 215-237.
  36. ^ Bill Winter, "1971–2001: The Libertarian Party's 30th Anniversary Year: Remembering the first three decades of America's 'Party of Principle'" LP News
  37. ^ The Libertarian Vote, by David Boaz and David Kirby. Cato Institute policy analysis paper 580, October 18, 2006. The Libertarian Vote
  38. ^ International Society for Individual Liberty Freedom Network list.
  39. ^ David Lewis Schaefer, Robert Nozick and the Coast of Utopia, The New York Sun, April 30, 2008.
  40. ^ The Advocates Robert Nozick page.
  41. ^ Leonard E. Read, Neither Left Nor Right, The Freeman, February 1998, Vol. 48 No. 2.
  42. ^ Harry Browne, The Libertarian stand on abortion, Harry Browne web site, December 21, 1998.
  43. ^ Positive and Negative Liberty, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Oct 8, 2007.
  44. ^ Wolff, Jonathan (PDF). Libertarianism, Utility, and Economic Competition. http://www.virginialawreview.org/content/pdfs/92/1605.pdf. 
  45. ^ Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry on "Contractarianism", revised April 4, 2007.
  46. ^ Anthony de Jasay, Hayek: Some Missing Pieces, The Review of Austrian Economics Vol. 9,NO.1 (1996): 107-18, ISSN0889-3047
  47. ^ Hardy Bouillon, Hartmut Kliemt, Ordered AnarchyAshgate Publishing, Ltd., 2007, foreward, ISBN 075466113X, 9780754661139
  48. ^ Libertarian Does Not Equal Libertine
  49. ^ What Libertarianism Isn't
  50. ^ A Libertarian Cheat Sheet by Wilton D. Alston
  51. ^ Myth and Truth About Libertarianism Murrary Rothbard
  52. ^ Do You Consider Yourself a Libertarian?
  53. ^ Rothbard, Murray. Are Libertarians 'Anarchists'?. LewRockwell.com.
  54. ^ Baake, David. "Prospects for Libertarian Socialism", Zmag (June 2005)
  55. ^ Mendes, Silva. ‘Socialismo Libertdrio ou Anarchismo’ Vol. 1 (1896): “Society should be free through mankind's spontaneous federative affiliation to life, based on the community of land and tools of the trade; meaning: Anarchy will be equality by abolition of private property and liberty by abolition of authority”
  56. ^ Sims, Franwa (2006). The Anacostia Diaries As It Is. Lulu Press. p. 160. 
  57. ^ Bookchin, Murray. 'Post-Scarcity Anarchism' AK Press (2004) p.xl
  58. ^ Chomsky, Noam. 'Chomsky on Democracy and Education' Routledge (2002) p.133
  59. ^ Prof. Will Kymlicka "libertarianism, left-" in Honderich, Ted (2005). The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. City: Oxford U Pr, N Y. ISBN 9780199264797.  See also Steiner, Hillel & Vallentyne. 2000. Left-Libertarianism and Its Critics: The Contemporary Debate. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 1
  60. ^ a b Gaus, Gerald F. & Kukathas, Chandran. 2004. Handbook of Political Theory. Sage Publications Inc. p. 128
  61. ^ Vallentyne, Peter; Steiner, Hillel (2000). Left-Libertarianism and Its Critics Left-Libertarianism and Its Critics: The Contemporary Debate. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p. 1. ISBN 9780312236991. 
  62. ^ e.g. Faatz, Chris, "Toward[s] a Libertarian Socialism."
  63. ^ a b Foldvary, Fred E. Geoism and Libertarianism. The Progress Report. [1]
  64. ^ Swartz, Clarence Lee. What is Mutualism?. Modern Publishers. 
  65. ^ Fisher, Vardis. Libertarian and Mutualist Essays on Free Banking, Free Land and Individualism. Revisionist Press. 
  66. ^ Edwards, Paul. The Encyclopedia of Philosophy. p. 113. 
  67. ^ Miller, David. 1987. "Mutualism." The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Political Thought. Blackwell Publishing. p. 11
  68. ^ Tandy, Francis D., 1896, Voluntary Socialism, chapter 6, paragraph 15.
  69. ^ Tandy, Francis D., 1896, Voluntary Socialism, chapter 6, paragraphs 9, 10 & 22.
    Carson, Kevin, 2004, Studies in Mutualist Political Economy, chapter 2 (after Meek & Oppenheimer).
  70. ^ Tandy, Francis D., 1896, Voluntary Socialism, chapter 6, paragraph 19.
    Carson, Kevin, 2004, Studies in Mutualist Political Economy, chapter 2 (after Ricardo, Dobb & Oppenheimer).
  71. ^ Solution of the Social Problem, 1848-49.
  72. ^ Adams, Ian. 2002. Political Ideology Today. p. 135. Manchester University Press; Ostergaard, Geoffrey. 2003. Anarchism. In W. Outwaite (Ed.), The Blackwell Dictionary of Modern Social Thought. p. 14. Blackwell Publishing
  73. ^ Hess, Karl. The Death of Politics. Interview in Playboy Magazine, March 1969
  74. ^ Holcombe, Randall G., Common Property in Anarcho-Capitalism, Journal of Libertarian Studies, Volume 19, No. 2 (Spring 2005):3–29.
  75. ^ Avrich, Paul. Anarchist Voices: An Oral History of Anarchism in America, Abridged Paperback Edition (1996), p. 282
  76. ^ Danley, John R. (November 1991). "Polestar refined: Business ethics and political economy". Journal of Business Ethics (Springer Netherlands) 10 (12): 915–933. doi:10.1007/BF00383797. 
  77. ^ Lora, Ronald & Longton, Henry. 1999. The Conservative Press in Twentieth-Century America. Greenwood Press. p. 369
  78. ^ Black, Bob. Beneath the Underground. Feral House, 1994. p. 4
  79. ^ Konkin was the founder of agorism, author of the New Libertarian Manifesto, and founder of the Movement of the Libertarian Left
  80. ^ Long is a well-known writer on left-libertarian zines and blogs. One of his descriptions of the political spectrum is in his article for the Ludwig von Mises Institute entitled Rothbard's "Left and Right": Forty Years Later
  81. ^ Long, Roderick, "Anti-copyright Resources", Molinari Institute 
  82. ^ "In 1978, the Movement of the Libertarian Left was formed out of remaining aboveground activists to restore and continue the alliance Rothbard and Oglesby had begun between the New Left and Libertarians against foreign intervention or imperialism." [2]
  83. ^ Rad Geek People’s Daily 2004-05-01–Free The Unions (and all political prisoners)
  84. ^ The Industrial Radical
  85. ^ See for example Kevin Carson's Austrian and Marxist Theories of Monopoly Capital: A Mutualist Synthesis
  86. ^ Marcus, B.K. BlackCrayon.com: Dictionary: Definition of "minarchism"
  87. ^ a b Gregory, Anthory.The Minarchist's Dilemma. Strike The Root. 10 May 2004.
  88. ^ a b Albert Jay Nock. Jefferson. Brace and Company, 1926. p. 199. "Thus [Jefferson] was quite regularly for State rights against the Union, for county rights against the State, for township rights or village rights against the county, and for private rights against all."
  89. ^ a b Edward Feser, What Libertarianism Isn’t, Lew Rockwell.com, December 22, 2001.
  90. ^ Ralph Raico, Is Libertarianism Amoral?, New Individualist Review, Volume 3, Number 3, Fall 1964, 29-36; republished by Ludwig von Mises Institute, April 4, 2005.
  91. ^ Anthony Gregory, Left, Right, Moderate and Radical, LewRockwell.com, December 21, 2006.
  92. ^ Cathy Young, Enforcing Virtue: Is social stigma a threat to liberty, or is it liberty in action?, review of "Freedom & Virtue: The Conservative Libertarian Debate", Reason, March 2007.
  93. ^ Vance, Laurence (January 29, 2008). "Is Ron Paul Wrong on Abortion?" (in English). LewRockwell.com. http://www.lewrockwell.com/vance/vance133.html. Retrieved on 2008-07-01. 
  94. ^ DiLorenzo, Thomas. "Constitutional Futility". LewRockwell.com. http://www.lewrockwell.com/dilorenzo/dilorenzo74.html. Retrieved on 2008-07-02. 
  95. ^ Keith Preston. Why I Am Not a Cultural Conservative. 'Hoppe is a leading theorist and proponent of what has become known as "paleolibertarianism". Also known as "New Fusionism", this tendency was developed by the late Murray Rothbard and his associates following their defection from the "mainstream" libertarian movement in the late 1980s. '.
  96. ^ For further elaboration see "Wrong, Pat, wrong" by Karen De Coster, and "The Trouble With 'Cracking Down on Immigration'" by Anthony Gregory
  97. ^ Keith Preston. Why I Am Not a Cultural Conservative. 'The primary citadels of this "paleolibertarianism" are the Ludwig von Mises Institute, an Alabama-based think tank, and the LewRockwell.com web site.'
  98. ^ Keith Preston. Why I Am Not a Cultural Conservative. "Paleolibertarianism makes the mistake of confusing libertarianism with Euro-centrism, Christianity, bourgeois morality and the nuclear family."
  99. ^ http://www.qando.net/details.aspx?Entry=650
  100. ^ http://owlwisebush.blogspot.com/2009/03/neolibertarianism-vs-neoconservativism.html
  101. ^ http://www.qando.net/details.aspx?Entry=650
  102. ^ a b Anthony Gregory. What's left of the old right.
  103. ^ Anthony Gregory. A Revolutionary Manifesto
  104. ^ Jørn K. Baltzersen. For Ceremonies and Emergencies. 2006-06-22.
  105. ^ Butler Shaffer. The Death of the American State.
  106. ^ Ayn Rand’s Q & A on Libertarianism
  107. ^ Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand
  108. ^ Libertarian National Committee: Our History
  109. ^ In Paris, « antistrike » rally to support Prime Minister Mr. Fillon project , Le Monde, 2003.
  110. ^ Andrew Schwartz, An Interview with Sabine Herold on Politics, France, and Freedom, January 12, 2004.
  111. ^ Australian Electoral Commission register of political parties.
  112. ^ Free State Project Membership Statistics accessed at December 14, 2007

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