Remembering libertarian gay activist Roy Childs

Steve Mariotti: As DOMA Collapses, I Remember Libertarian Gay Activist Roy Childs - Huffington Post:

July 2, 2013 - "[T]he Supreme Court's decision to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act ... brought back memories of one of the warmest people I've ever known, the great libertarian essayist, critic and gay activist Roy A. Childs, Jr. (1948-1992).

"Roy edited the Libertarian Review from 1977 until it folded in 1981. Next, he joined the Cato institute as a research fellow, eventually becoming a policy analyst. He was best-known, though, for his brilliant essays for Laissez Faire Books -- the largest seller of libertarian-related books. But I will always remember Roy as the man who dared challenge Ayn Rand on not only Objectivism, but also on her die-hard homophobia. As someone who had met Rand and knew how fearsome she could be, I admired his nerve!

"I was so impressed with Roy's essay, 'An Open Letter to Ayn Rand,' published in the Society for Individual Liberty's Individualist newsletter in 1969, that I wrote him a letter congratulating him on having the courage to stand up to her. I will never forget this sentence from Roy's essay: 'Let us walk forward into the sunlight, Miss Rand. You belong with us.'"

Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steve-mariotti/as-doma-collapses-i-remem_b_3537107.html
'via Blog this'
________________________________________________________________
See also: Childs's argument for anarchism, by George J. Dance

There will be more 'libertarian millennials' like Edward Snowden

Edward Snowden: there will be more 'Libertarian Millennials' like him - Telegraph - Bonnie Greer:

July 3, 2013 - "Something new is revealing itself in the tale of Edward Snowden and it is coming quickly into the general consciousness. Snowden is part of the global town square, created by social media, which is effectively running politics in Brazil, Egypt, Turkey, and will do so in the West, too.

"Snowden, who spent his 30th birthday on the run, is one of a new breed I call the 'Libertarian Millennial. Apolitical, perhaps even post-political, they do what they do because they have come to their own conclusions in their own time and in their own way. 'I don’t want to live in a society that does these [surveillance] sort of things… I do not want to live in a world where everything I do and say is recorded,' Snowden declares. There you have it: 'I don’t', 'I do not' and 'everything I do and say' are the key phrases here....

"It is no surprise that Snowden contributed to the 2012 presidential campaign of Ron Paul, who supports curtailing the powers of government. In his maverick stance, and that of his son, Senator Rand Paul, the young find a model for taking on the system as a personal quest. Snowden becomes, in his fight, what Millennials look up to: a charismatic individual, who by sheer power of self-belief can create support, even a movement."

Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet/10157586/Edward-Snowden-there-will-be-more-Libertarian-Millennials-like-him.html
'via Blog this'

Video appears to show Adam Kokesh loading shotgun in Washington, D.C.

Video Appears to Show Libertarian Activist Adam Kokesh Loading Shotgun in Downtown D.C.: DCist:

"The libertarian activist Adam Kokesh ... is seen in a 22-second video loading and then pumping a single-barrel shotgun while standing on Freedom Plaza on Pennsylvania Avenue NW, across from the John A. Wilson Building and a few blocks from the White House. The video is dated July 4, 2013, with the title 'Open Carry March on DC a Success.'

"While loading the gun, Kokesh, 31, recites the last passage of the "Final American Revolution Pledge of Resistance,' a manifesto he posted on his website on Wednesday.

"'We will not be silent,' he says. 'We will not obey. We will not allow our government to destroy our humanity. We are the final' - pausing to pull back the shotgun grip - 'American' - releasing the grip - 'revolution. See you next Independence Day.'

"The Metropolitan Police Department and U.S. Park Police say in a joint statement that they have seen the video and are reviewing it: 'The Metropolitan Police Department and U.S. Park Police are aware that today Adam Kokesh posted a video that appears to have been taken in Freedom Plaza in Northwest, D.C. We are in the process of determining the authenticity of the video.'"

Read more: http://dcist.com/2013/07/video_appears_to_show_libertarian_a.php
'via Blog this'

Gary Johnson: 'This Independence Day feels different'

Libertarian Gary Johnson: 'this Independence Day feels different' - Washington Times - Jennifer Thompson:

"Former Libertarian presidential hopeful Gary Johnson ... is not delivering the typical feel-good Fourth of July message this year.

"'This Independence Day feels a little different,' he says. 'The news in recent weeks about the IRS using its force against certain targeted groups has reminded us that, absent vigilance on our part, the government will abuse the power it has accumulated. Likewise, as we learn more about the massive surveillance being conducted by the NSA and the FBI, a lot of Americans are today thinking and talking about the 4th Amendment and its intended protections against unreasonable searches....

"'These "revelations" are bringing long-overdue attention to the liberties the Founding Fathers worked so hard and sacrificed so much to provide and protect. It is more than a little ironic that the Revolution was prompted, in part, by abusive tax policies and unreasonable searches - on the part of ‘tyrants’.'"

"Mr. Johnson is ... chairman of Our America Initiative, a grassroots group centered on smaller government and a frugal mindset. His fellow board members include Barry Goldwater Jr., former independent presidential hopeful Buddy Roemer and Whole Foods co-founder John Mackey.

Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/blog/watercooler/2013/jul/3/libertarian-gary-johnson-independence-day-feels-di/#ixzz2Y7E5edI8
'via Blog this'

SCOTUS is "moving in a libertarian direction"

The Supreme Court's Libertarian Moment? - Ilya Shapiro (Senior Fellow, Cato Institute), Huffington Post:

July 2, 2103 - "The casual observer of the Supreme Court must have been quite confused last week. First, the Court punted on an affirmative action case, making it harder to use race in college admissions decisions without prohibiting the practice altogether. It then won plaudits from conservatives by striking down key parts of the Voting Rights Act -- but disappointed many of them the very next day by gutting the Defense of Marriage Act.

"What is going on?...

The theme of last week's cases was captured by President Obama's reaction to the same-sex marriage rulings: 'We are all equal under the law'.... If we're all equal, then we shouldn't be judged by skin color or sexual orientation, and the machinery of democracy shouldn't be gummed up by outdated racial classifications.

"In other words, the Supreme Court is increasingly embracing the Constitution's structural and rights-based protections for individual freedom and self-governance. Not in every case, not always with one voice, and not without fits and starts, but as a whole the justices are moving in a libertarian direction.

It's therefore no coincidence that the Cato Institute is the only organization to have filed briefs supporting the winning side in each of the three big cases (or that we went 15-3 on the year). Even beyond racial preferences and gay rights, this Court is coming to be defined by what Justice Kennedy has called 'equal liberty'."

Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ilya-shapiro/the-supreme-courts-libert_b_3536534.html
'via Blog this'

Sarah Palin's 'libertarian streak' doesn't impress Libertarian Party

Sarah Palin's 'Libertarian Streak' Doesn't Impress Libertarian Party - Washington Whispers (usnews.com) - Steven Nelson, U.S. News & World Report:

July 1, 2013 - "Former vice presidential candidate and Gov. Sarah Palin, R-Alaska, openly mulled leaving the Republican Party in a Saturday interview on Fox News, citing her 'libertarian streak.' The Libertarian Party, frequently a refuge for renegade Republicans, isn't sure that she would be a good fit....

"'[W]hile a few of Sarah Palin's views are aligned with those of the Libertarian Party, her pro-interventionist foreign policy, her support of the 2008 Republican-led bailouts, her loyal support of Big Government Republicans, her social conservative agenda and her lack of concrete backing for any serious downsizing of Big Government runs afoul of the Libertarian Party's goals and most Libertarians' views,' the Libertarian Party's executive director, Carla Howell, told U.S. News....

"Over the weekend, Palin responded to a question about whether she would consider starting a new "Freedom Party".... 'I love the name of that party – the "Freedom Party",' she said. 'And if the GOP continues to back away from the planks in our platform, from the principles that built this party of Lincoln and Reagan, then, yeah, more and more of us are going to start saying, "You know, what's wrong with being independent," kind of with that libertarian streak that much of us have. In other words, we want government to back off and not infringe upon our rights.'"

Read more: http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2013/07/01/sarah-palins-libertarian-streak-doesnt-impress-libertarian-party
'via Blog this'

John Mackey joins Students for Liberty Board of Advisors

Whole Foods CEO Joins Libertarian Student Group's Board of Advisors - Steven Nelson, U.S. News & World Report:

June 27, 2013 - "John Mackey, the founder and co-CEO of trendy organic supermarket chain Whole Foods, has joined Students for Liberty's board of advisors.

"The libertarian student group announced Mackey's new position Thursday. The businessman joins a dozen other notable advisors, including 2012 Libertarian Party presidential candidate Gary Johnson and UCLA law professor Eugene Volokh.

"Mackey is well-known for his conservative political positions. Earlier this year, Mackey said President Barack Obama's 2010 health care reform law was consistent with fascism. "In fascism, the government doesn't own the means of production, but they do control it — and that's what's happening with our health care programs and these reforms," he explained to NPR. Mackey later said using the term fascism was "a bad choice"....

 "''Students For Liberty empowers students all over the world to be entrepreneurial activists on behalf of a free and prosperous society,' Mackey said in a statement released by the group. 'They've created an impressive and growing community of young people who understand and promote the ethical foundations of capitalism based on the importance of voluntary exchange and cooperation.'"

Read more: http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2013/06/27/whole-foods-ceo-joins-libertarian-student-groups-board-of-advisors