Libertas

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  • David Libertas
Trump with an ancap background.

Trump’s Pro-Liberty Accomplishments Sep 2, 2017

Enough time has passed that we can start assessing Trump's pro-liberty accomplishments. First on the list is that Trump allegedly ended the program of arming Syrian rebels. Assuming it wasn't just turned into a CIA black op, this is a good step forward in reducing the odds of terrorist blowback. Unfortunately, that is the end of Trump's pro-liberty accomplishments. Here is how the rest of his presidency has stacked up. Foreign Policy Failures Trump reversed his pledge to avoid nation building and Middle Eastern wars that are of no interest to Americans by bombing Syrian president Assad. And recently he's...

By David Libertas Vote6 4
Bush, Obama, Trump: sixteen years of war.

The Unknown Cost of Endless War Jul 28, 2017

We are entering the 16th year of the US occupation of Afghanistan. It is not America's longest war. Officially, the US is still at war with North Korea. That 67-year conflict never had an official peace treaty, the last 64 years technically being a ceasefire while the two sides negotiate peace. But in terms of active violence, it is the US' longest war. It is time to ask: what is the unknown cost of endless war? The obvious cost is the carnage, maimed and dead soldiers, cities turned to rubble, families destroyed and pushed into the hands of ISIS by...

By David Libertas Vote1 0
FDA = fail. Poison approved: Olean, NutraSweet, high fructose corn syrup.

The FDA Fails Us All Jun 30, 2017

Do you remember the time you got on board with libertarianism? I remember it clearly. The Libertarian Party intrigued me, but some of the bureaucracies they opposed seemed important. Then I saw one of their presidential candidates, Gary Nolan, back in the old days when the party ran actual Libertarians rather than failed Republicans. He made the case against the FDA. He explained how aspirin comes from before we had an FDA. The problem is it causes birth defects and serious gastric lesions in most animals, making it fail the FDA-mandated animal models for drug toxicity. Never mind the fact...

By David Libertas Vote2 0
March not for science.

The March Not for Science Apr 23, 2017

Yesterday there was an alleged march for science in Washington, DC, and other cities. It was, of course, not about science. Let's explore what this march was really about and what libertarians can learn from it. Marches in support of benign-sounding things like "science" are rarely about that thing. They are usually about leftist causes packaged in a way to sound otherwise. Their real purpose is messaging. The subtext of these events are to create mental associations of conservatives with being opposed to science or opposed to women, to children, to poor people, or whatever the march is about. In...

By David Libertas Vote5 0
Donald Trump riding a missile

The Early Term Abortion of Trumpism Apr 14, 2017

Trumpism is dead. It was given an early term abortion long before it could have been born. Pre-Election Trumpism The most interesting thing about the Trump campaign was his appearance of authenticity. He said things that you just don't say when running for president. I don't just mean his crass manner of speaking but even the substance of his issues: opposing free trade, opposing foreign interventions, and a hard line against illegal immigration. There are certain issues position you just don't openly admit to having when running for president. This is why Bush and Obama both pretended in public to...

By David Libertas Vote2 0
Trumponomics

Trumponomics Doom in Argentina Mar 10, 2017

Try to think of a country that elected a populist president: someone who wanted to boost manufacturing jobs, insists that domestically-sold products should be made domestically, and threatens to use tariffs to shut off foreign competition. How would that work out? I am, of course, referring to President Cristina Kirchner of Argentina, not President Donald Trump. It's too soon for Trump to have implemented his economic plans, but we can see how Trumponomics will work by looking southwards to Argentina. It is a portent of the doom that awaits us. Argentine Protectionism President Kirchner pushed through laws mandating that certain items sold in...

By David Libertas Vote3 0
Evil Donald Trump

How Evil Is Trump? Feb 24, 2017

Is Donald J. Trump the most evil president to take office? Many of his opponents would have you believe so. The hysteria against trump is beyond any president in modern history, even surpassing the anti-Obama reaction from the fringe right. There's even a dating website for helping Americans meet Canadians for romance so that they can flee to Canada and escape Trump's evil dictatorship. But let's put this into perspective. Has Trump expressed support for secretly infecting blacks with syphilis? If not then he's less evil than countless bureaucrats working in federal health department who did just that for forty years...

By David Libertas Vote4 0
BackWordz

BackWordz Upcoming Tour and Album Feb 4, 2017

Winning the culture for liberty comes before winning minds and elections. In support of that comes "Veracity," the debut album of BackWordz with front man Eric July and an accompanying live tour. BackWordz hit the liberty scene last year dropping several singles on YouTube. Their sound leans towards early oughts metal rock with an interspersing of rap that I for one sorely miss. Good hard driving rock has slowly faded away with greats like Slipknot, Korn, and Tool giving way to abominations like Lady Gaga and the Biebster. Now you can get quality rock without the leftist drivel. (I want to like to Rage Against...

By David Libertas Vote4 0
Your vote does not count. Fart instead.

The True Value of Voting Jan 20, 2017

Today is Inauguration Day! It marks the peaceful transition of violent power over the lives of billions in America and abroad from one person to another. As we celebrate or mourn or shrug off today's inauguration of Donald Trump, let us reflect on the election. I don't mean the campaigning and the candidates, but rather the act of voting. The question we must ask ourselves is which act is more meaningful: voting or farting. A Serious Question! No, this is a serious question! I am in no way being flippant nor facetious. The answer to this seemingly ridiculous question reveals...

By David Libertas Vote4 0
Meet Ethan and Emily. Your kids will learn about liberty alongside the Tuttle Twins!

Teaching Kids Economics: The Tuttle Twins Jan 15, 2017

More important than winning elections is winning hearts and minds of young people. Connor Boyack of the Libertas Insititute has made an important effort to this end. A parent dismayed at the lack of books to teach liberty to very young children, Connor has taken it upon himself to create books to teach economics to children aged 5 through 10. In these books the young Tuttle twins go through adventures based on literature with which you may already be familiar: I Pencil, The Creature from Jekyll Island, The Law, and The Road to Serfdom (or in this case, The Road...

By David Libertas Vote4 0

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