Libertarianism
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Libertarianism is a term used by political philosophies which seek to promote
individual liberty and seek to minimize or abolish the state.
“left-libertarianism” endorses full self-ownership, but differs on
unappropriated natural resources. "Right-libertarianism" holds that
unappropriated natural resources may be appropriated by individuals.
"Left-libertarianism" holds that unappropriated natural resources belong to
everyone and must be distributed in some egalitarian manner.
Leonard Read rejected the concepts of "left" and "right" libertarianism, calling them "authoritarian."
Libertarian socialism is often used as a synonym for non-individualist anarchism or socialist anarchism, to dilineate it from individualist libertarianism.
People who do not use "libertarianism" as a synonym for anarchism but use it to refer to individualistic free-market philosophy only, refer to free-market anarchism as "libertarian anarchism."
Libertarianism is also synonymous with classical liberalism.
The word libertarian is an antonym of authoritarian. Till recently the term "libertarianism" was often used as a synonym
for anarchism.
Anarchism is political philosophy where society has no government, laws, or other authority, except a free association of all its members. Anarchism also considers government and hierarchical forms of social organization to be unnecessary and undesirable.
Anarchism is anti-authoritarian interpretations of communism, collectivism,
syndicalism or participatory economics. Anarchism is therefore considered to be a radical
left-wing ideology.
Anarchism derives from the Greek anarchos, meaning "without rulers", from the
prefix an-, "without"+ archê, "sovereignty or magistracy".
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The
Encyclopedia of Libertarianism
As a continuation of the older tradition of classical liberalism, libertarian thinking
draws on a rich body of thought and scholarship. Contemporary libertarian scholars are
continuing that tradition by making substantial contributions to such fields as
philosophy, jurisprudence, economics, evolutionary psychology, political theory, and
history, in both academia and politics. With more than 300 A-to-Z signed entries written
by top scholars, The Encyclopedia of Libertarianism is purposed to be a useful compilation
of and introduction to libertarian scholarship. The Encyclopedia starts with an
introductory essay offering an extensive historical and thematic overview of key thinkers,
events, and publications in the development of libertarian thought. The Reader’s
Guide groups content for researchers and students alike, allowing them to study
libertarianism topically, biographically, and by public policy issues.
Key Features
Entries conclude with bibliographies and references for further reading and
cross-references to related entries.
Each entry provides an introduction to a topic or policy question relevant to
libertarianism or a biography of a person who has had an impact on libertarianism.
Editors take special care to ensure entries clearly explain libertarian approaches to
issues, do not take sides on disputed matters or engage in polemics, and represent the
views of all sides fairly and accurately.
About the Author
Ronald Hamowy is a Fellow in Social Thought at the Cato Institute. He is professor of
history emeritus at the University of Alberta and previously was assistant director of the
History of Western Civilization Program at Stanford University. He received his Ph.D. in
social thought under F. A. Hayek at the University of Chicago. He is the author of books
on the Scottish Enlightenment and on health care and the editor of a book on drug
prohibition and the Liberty Press edition of Cato’s Letters. He is a member of the
Mont Pelerin Society, an international society of scholars founded in 1947 by Hayek,
Friedman, and other luminaries of the libertarian movement.
Libertarianism:
A Primer
Amazon.com Review
Libertarianism used to be just a topic at your high school Government Club. But since all
those Ayn Rand-niks are now in Congress, it's become a bigger deal. This book is an
admirably clear exposition of the position--defined by David Boaz as "the view that
each person has the right to live his life in any way he chooses so long as he respects
the equal rights of others"--which is useful to both adherents and those who merely
want to "know the enemy." Of course, a lot of questions are left unanswered: Do
I have to obey speed limits? Is it OK for me to drive on the left as long as I promise to
swerve when I see you coming? Aren't there a lot of valuable enterprises that couldn't be
achieved by individual effort alone, but only with a degree of government compulsion,
including the federal highway system, public parks, and public libraries? --This text
refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly
This book is more substantial if less elegantly written than Charles Murray's What It
Means to Be a Libertarian (Forecasts, Nov. 18). Boaz, executive v-p of the Cato Institute,
a libertarian think tank, reaches back to religion and theorists like David Hume and Adam
Smith to explore the roots of libertarianism. Boaz, like Murray, may be too optimistic in
his assumption that private charity will supplant government assistance; however, he
argues cogently against government excess. Government intervention (taxation, bank
insurance, Medicare, etc.), he maintains, can diminish virtues like thrift and
self-reliance. Libertarianism, he stresses, enhances individual dignity and pluralism;
though he opposes laws based on race, he suggests, intriguingly, that Social Security
discriminates against blacks because they have lower life expectancies. Predictably, Boaz
argues that free markets enhance economic productivity and employment, and that government
programs perpetuate bureaucratic and special interests. Among his proposals: end corporate
and farm welfare; chop defense spending in half; abolish numerous federal agencies;
privatize government programs. He proposes privatizing the Social Security system and
offering tax-free Medical Savings Accounts in which unused money allocated for health
insurance could be redirected to savings accounts.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or
unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
Boaz, executive vice-president of the Cato Institute, advocates libertarianism as the
underlying philosophy for 21st-century U.S. politics. He finds that this philosophy allows
each person "the right to live his life in any way he chooses as long as he respects
the equal rights of others." Boaz claims that libertarian principles will minimize
government intervention in people's economic and political choices and enlarge ideas of
individual freedom. Indicating that libertarian political and economic approaches can
diminish problems that stem from "big government," Boaz also argues that
libertarian views can resolve contemporary policy dilemmas, such as drug use or
discriminatory employment practices, better than pluralism or capitalism. General readers
and individuals concerned with future directions of American politics will find this book
an interesting and informative initial analysis. [See also Charles Murray's What It Means
to Be a Libertarian, reviewed below.?Ed.]?Steven Puro, St. Louis Univ., Mo.
-?Steven Puro, St. Louis Univ., Mo.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or
unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
Whereas Charles Murray's What It Means to Be a Libertarian approached the subject from a
personal perspective, Boaz casts a more general net. The intellectual lineage of
libertarianism--from Locke to Smith to Jefferson to F. A. Hayek to Ayn Rand--is summarized
and snippets quoted from their works. Then Boaz knowledgeably distributes those writers'
principles as applied to the rights of the individual and the workings of the market.
Since its laissez-faire heyday in the nineteenth century, under the label
"liberalism," freedom, Boaz argues, has been smothered by taxes, bureaucracy,
and regulatory infringements on personal choice. The resulting "welfare-warfare"
state, no matter what its beneficiaries derive from the political competition to control
it, imposes invisible costs on the rest of society, which Boaz identifies and for which
Boaz prescribes the standard libertarian remedies: free minds and free markets. A cogent
screed for the curious. Gilbert Taylor --This text refers to an out of print or
unavailable edition of this title.
From Kirkus Reviews
From theoretical roots to contemporary policies, Boaz, who is executive vice president of
the Cato Institute, a conservative think tank, presents a solid introduction to a trendy
ideology. The end of libertarianism is individual freedom, its Antichrist the state, and
its mantra the market. Unlike those who bash government simply to further their own
interests, Boaz understands the substantive implications of the libertarian merger of
natural-rights liberalism and capitalism, and he embraces them. He recognizes that liberty
(which calls for maximizing individual choice) is not synonymous with democracy (which is
a process of social choice) and promotes the former as the overriding concern. He rejects
the government intervention in private lives favored by conservatives just as adamantly as
the government intervention in the market favored by 20th-century liberals. There are some
odd omissions, however: Public goods are discussed without accounting for national
defense, and the role of government (or lack thereof) in the economy without mentioning
the provision of money. A more serious omission is the absence of the ultimate critics of
government, the 19th-century anarchists, from Boaz's version of intellectual history. No
doubt they are ignored because the anarchists included private property and other elements
of capitalism in their pantheon of coercive institutions. Boaz simply defines coercion as
a function of government and thereby anoints capitalism as a coercion-free form of social
organization. Sliding by the more encompassing anarchist critique with an assumption
rather than an argument leaves the libertarian infatuation with capitalism open to
question. Despite struggling with tunnel-vision, Boaz tries to be an intellectually honest
cheerleader for capitalism and produces a work that should be taken seriously. (For
another view of libertarianism, see Charles Murray's What It Means to Be a Libertarian, p.
1657.) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers
to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
Dave Barry I hope everybody reads this book. My only concern is that, if we ever do wise
up and dump the federal government, I'll lose my biggest source of comic material. --
Review
P.J. O'RourkeAmerica is a country full of people who feel personal liberty and individual
responsibility in their guts. This book puts those guts into words. America is also a
country full of politicians, academics, and self-possessed elites who mistrust liberty and
responsibility ot the bottom of their souls. This book plants a kick in that fundament.
William F. WeldLibertarianism: A Primer is a bracing shot of 100-proof libertarianism
guaranteed to render mute the last defenders of big, paternalistic government. With
plain-spoken eloquence, David Boaz unveils a vision of America that has at its core an
abiding respect for personal liberty and freedom writ large.
Product Description
Tens of millions of Americans, from Generation X-ers to baby boomers and beyond, are
rediscovering libertarianism, a visionary alternative to the tired party orthodoxies of
left and right. In 1995 a Gallup poll found that 52 percent of Americans said "the
federal government has become so large and powerful that it poses an immediate threat to
the rights and freedoms of ordinary citizens." Later that year, The Wall Street
Journal concurred, saying: "Because of their growing disdain for government, more and
more Americans appear to be drifting—often unwittingly—toward a libertarian
philosophy."
Libertarianism is hardly new, but its framework for liberty under law and economic
progress makes it especially suited for the dynamic new era we are now entering. In the
United States, the bureaucratic leviathan is newly threatened by a resurgence of the
libertarian ideas upon which the country was founded. We are witnessing a breakdown of all
the cherished beliefs of the welfare-warfare state. Americans have seen the failure of big
government. Now, in the 1990s, we are ready to apply the lessons of this century to make
the next one the century not of the state but of the free individual.
David Boaz presents the essential guidebook to the libertarian perspective, detailing its
roots, central tenets, solutions to contemporary policy dilemmas, and future in American
politics. He confronts head-on the tough questions frequently posed to libertarians: What
about inequality? Who protects the environment? What ties people together if they are
essentially self-interested? A concluding section, "Are You a Libertarian?"
gives readers a chance to explore the substance of their own beliefs. Libertarianism is
must reading for understanding one of the most exciting and hopeful movements of our time.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
From Chapter 1: The Coming Libertarian Age
In 1995 Gallup pollsters found that 39 percent of Americans said that "the federal
government has become so large and powerful that it poses an immediate threat to the
rights and freedoms of ordinary citizens." Pollsters couldn't believe it, so they
tried again, taking out the word "immediate." This time 52 percent of Americans
agreed.
Later that year USA Today reported in a front-page story on post-baby-boom Americans that
"many of the 41 million members of Generation X . . . are turning to an old
philosophy that suddenly seems new: libertarianism." A front-page report in the Wall
Street Journal agreed: "Much of the angry sentiment coursing through [voters'] veins
today isn't traditionally Republican or even conservative. It's libertarian.... Because of
their growing disdain for government, more and more Americans appear to be
drifting—often unwittingly—toward a libertarian philosophy."
Writing in 1995 about the large numbers of Americans who say they'd welcome a third party,
David Broder of the Washington Post commented,
The distinguishing characteristic of these potential independent voters—aside from
their disillusionment with Washington politicians of both parties—is their
libertarian streak. They are skeptical of the Democrats because they identify them with
big government. They are wary of the Republicans because of the growing influence within
the GOP of the religious right.
Where did this sudden media interest in libertarianism come from? As USA Today noted,
libertarianism challenges the conventional wisdom and rejects outmoded statist ideas, so
it often has a strong appeal to young people. As for myself, when I first discovered
libertarian ideas in my college days, it seemed obvious to me that most libertarians would
be young (even though I was dimly aware that the libertarian books I was reading were
written by older people). Who but a young person could believe in such a robust vision of
individual freedom? When I went to my first libertarian event offcampus, I was mildly
surprised that the first person I encountered was about forty, which seemed quite old to
me at the time. Then another person arrived, more the sort of person I had expected to
meet, a young woman in her late twenties. But her first question was, "Have you seen
my parents?" I soon learned that her sixtyish parents were the leading libertarian
activists in the state, and my mistaken impressions about what kind of people would become
libertarians were gone forever. I discovered that the young woman's parents, and the
millions of Americans who today share libertarian beliefs, stand firmly in a long American
tradition of individual liberty and opposition to coercive government.
Libertarianism is the view that each person has the right to live his life in any way he
chooses so long as he respects the equal rights of others. (Throughout this book I use the
traditional "he" and "his" to refer to all individuals, male and
female; unless the context indicates otherwise, "he" and "his" should
be understood to refer to both men and women.) Libertarians defend each person's right to
life, liberty, and property—rights that people possess naturally, before governments
are created. In the libertarian view, all human relationships should be voluntary; the
only actions that should be forbidden by law are those that involve the initiation of
force against those who have not themselves used force—actions like murder, rape,
robbery, kidnapping, and fraud.
Most people habitually believe in and live by this code of ethics. Libertarians believe
this code should be applied consistently—and specifically, that it should be applied
to actions by governments as well as by individuals. Governments should exist to protect
rights, to protect us from others who might use force against us. When governments use
force against people who have not violated the rights of others, then governments
themselves become rights violators. Thus libertarians condemn such government actions as
censorship, the draft, price controls, confiscation of property, and regulation of our
personal and economic lives.
Put so starkly, the libertarian vision may sound otherworldly, like a doctrine for a
universe of angels that never was and never will be. Surely, in today's messy and often
unpleasant world, government must do a great deal? But here's the surprise: The answer is
no. In fact, the more messy and modern the world, the better libertarianism works
compared—for instance—with monarchy, dictatorship, and even postwar
American-style welfarism. The political awakening in America today is first and foremost
the realization that libertarianism is not a relic of the past. It is a
philosophy—more, a pragmatic plan—for the future. In American politics it is the
leading edge—not a backlash, but a vanguard.
Libertarian thought is so widespread today, and the American government has become so
bloated and ludicrous, that the two funniest writers in America are both libertarians. P.
J. O'Rourke summed up his political philosophy this way: "Giving money and power to
government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys." Dave Barry
understands government about as clearly as Tom Paine did: "The best way to understand
this whole issue is to look at what the government does: it takes money from some people,
keeps a bunch of it, and gives the rest to other people."
Libertarianism is an old philosophy, but its framework for liberty under law and economic
progress makes it especially suited for the dynamic world—call it the Information
Age, or the Third Wave, or the Third Industrial Revolution—we are now entering.
The Resurgence of Libertarianism
Some readers may well wonder why people in a generally free and prosperous country like
the United States need to adopt a new philosophy of government. Aren't we doing reasonably
well with our current system? We do indeed have a society that has brought unprecedented
prosperity to a larger number of people than ever before. But we face problems—from
high taxes to poor schools to racial tensions to environmental destruction—that our
current approach is not handling adequately. Libertarianism has solutions to those
problems, as I'll try to demonstrate. For now I'll offer three reasons that libertarianism
is the right approach for America on the eve of the new millennium.
First, we are not nearly as prosperous as we could be. If our economy were growing at the
rate it grew from 1945 to 1973, our gross domestic product would be 40 percent larger than
it is. But that comparison doesn't give the true picture of the economic harm that
excessive government is doing to us. In a world of global markets and accelerating
technological change, we shouldn't be growing at the same pace we did forty years
ago—we should be growing faster. More reliance on markets and individual enterprise
would mean more wealth for all of us, which is especially important for those who have the
least today.
Second, our government has become far too powerful, and it increasingly threatens our
freedom—as those 52 percent of Americans told the befuddled pollsters. Government
taxes too much, regulates too much, interferes too much. Politicians from Jesse Helms to
Jesse Jackson seek to impose their own moral agenda on 250 million Americans. Events like
the assault on the Branch Davidians, the shootings of Vicki Weaver and Donald Scott, the
beating of Rodney King, and the government's increasing attempts to take private property
without judicial process make us fear an out-of-control government and remind us of the
need to reestablish strict limits on power.
Third, in a fast-changing world where every individual will have unprecedented access to
information, centralized bureaucracies and coercive regulations just won't be able to keep
up with the real economy. The existence of global capital markets means that investors
won't be held hostage by national governments and their confiscatory tax systems. New
opportunities for telecommuting will mean that more and more workers will also have the
ability to flee high taxes and other intrusive government policies. Prosperous nations in
the twenty-first century will be those that attract productive people. We need a limited
government to usher in an unlimited future.
Libertarianism:
A Political Philosophy for Tomorrow
Product Description
“For many decades, news reports on the intellectual activities of the younger
generation have been confined almost exclusively to advocates of statism and collectivism.
Only recently [in 1971] have there appeared the first acknowledgements, in the newspapers,
of a rising interest among the younger generation in political philosophy that stands in
radical contrast to this authoritarian trend: Libertarianism.”
“Now, Professor John Hospers, [former] Director of the School of Philosophy of the
University of Southern California, has given us, in the latest book, a clear statement of
the central political-economic of this young intellectual movement. The book is offered,
not as an original work of philosophy, but rather as an attempt to delineate the major
positions on which most Libertarians would agree—and to answer many of the objections
and questions with which Libertarians have to contend.”
“Libertarianism is very simply and clearly written and requires no technical
knowledge on the part of the reader. Enjoyable, informative reading.”
-Nathaniel Branden, author of The Psychology of Self Esteem and The Disowned Self
“A most informative and provocative up-to-date exposition of an historic
political-economic doctrine that has been having a rebirth, in a new and more
sophisticated formulation, in recent years.”
-Martin E. Lean, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Philosophy at Brooklyn
College, of the City University of New York
“In days to come, when Libertarianism is accepted as one of the major political
philosophies, and perhaps the prevailing one, Professor Hospers will be remembered as one
of its founding fathers. His magnificent work offers a true intellectual foundation for
all those who profess to be advocates of, or objective about, personal, political, and
economic freedom.”
-Robert D. Kephart, Publisher of Human Events
About the Author
As co-founder of the national Libertarian Party and as the author of the exceptionally
readable book Libertarianism and numerous articles on liberty and politics, Dr. Hospers
became the Libertarian Party’s first candidate for President of the United States in
1972, garnering an electoral vote in that election.
Product Description
Ever since the publication in 1974 of Robert Nozick's 'Anarchy, State and Utopia',
libertarianism has been much discussed within political philosophy, science and economy
circles. Yet libertarianism has been so strongly identified with Nozick's version of it
that little attention has been devoted to other than Nozick's ideas and arguments. While
Nozick's version of libertarianism has preoccupied the academic discussion Nozick himself
has not responded to the many criticisms raised and yet other defenders of libertarianism
have not remained silent. Jan Narveson, Loren Lomasky, Eric Mack, Douglas Rasmussen,
Douglas Den Uyl and many others have contributed many impressive arguments of their own in
support of the libertarian idea that a political system is just when it successfully
secures the rights of individuals understood within the Lockean classical liberal
tradition. In this book, Tibor R. Machan analyses the state-of-the-debate on
libertarianism post Nozick. Going far beyond, the often cursory treatment of
libertarianism in major books and other publications, he examines closely the alternative
non-Nozickian defenses of libertarianism that have been advanced and, by applying these
arguments to innumerable policy areas in the field, Machan achieves a new visibility and
prominence for libertarianism.
Real
Libertarianism Assessed: Political Theory after Van Parijs
Product Description
Philippe Van Parijs's Real Freedom for All is widely acclaimed for providing not only the
most sophisticated defense of unconditional basic income, but also a rigorous examination
of many central issues within contemporary political theory. This collection, including a
response by Van Parijs, provides a comprehensive assessment of his "real
libertarian" vision of radical social change. The contributors include Richard
Arneson, Brian Barry, Thomas Christiano, John Cunliffe, Guido Erreygers, Hillel Steiner,
Peter Vallentyne, Robert van der Veen, and Stuart White.
Liberatio
- Hedonistic Libertarianism
Review
"Horrible!" --Jason's mother
Product Description
Welcome to a brave new world!
It has been the job of every government known to man to manipulate and program its
citizens to be obedient, mindless robots, ready to live and die for the state at any cost.
Patriotism is the motto when the state and the collective mind are one and no brain cell
is wasted on critical thinking. Liberatio is a manifesto for the dawn of a new age, where
governmental oppression is replaced by freethinking, where a herd mentality and conformity
are replaced by individualism, and where submission to authority is replaced by personal
strength. This book unapologetically lashes out at all governmental and religious
establishments that cripple individual freedom. Nothing is holy and everything is
questioned in this anti-government, anti-totalitarian, anti-tax, anti-military,
anti-police, anti-religion, anti-war, anti-work, anti-school, anti-conformity,
anti-submission, anti-nationalistic, anti-patriotic, pro-drugs, pro-prostitution,
pro-libertarian, pro-hedonism, pro-individual manifesto that will open the eyes of those
who have served as slaves for too long and who are in desperate need of an awakening. It
is time to reclaim your own mind...
Jason Licht, the author of Liberatio, is a die hard Libertarian, Individualist, Hedonist,
and Atheist. With this book he aims to enlighten the world about the corruption and
hypocrisy of governments and religions alike.
The
Origins of Left-Libertarianism: An Anthology of Historical Writings
Product Description
Important discussions of the philosophical foundations of left-libertarianism. Like the
more familiar right-libertarianism (such as that of Nozick), left-libertarianism holds
that agents own themselves (and thus owe no service the others expect as the result of
voluntary action). Unlike right-libertarianism, however, left-libertarianism holds that
natural resources are owned by the members of society in some egalitarian manner, and may
be appropriated only with their permission, or with a significant payment to them.
Book Description
This book contains the historically most important discussions of the philosophical
foundations of left-libertarianism. Like the more familiar right-libertarianism,
left-libertarianism holds that agents own themselves, but unlike right-libertarianism,
left-libertarianism holds that natural resources are owned by the members of society in
some egalitarian manner.
Left-Libertarianism
and Its Critics: The Contemporary Debate
Product Description
This book contains a collection of important recent writing on left-liberalism, a
political philosophy that recognizes both strong liberty rights and strong demands for
material equality. Essays from leading comtemporary political philosophers such as Nozick,
Van Parijs and Kymlica are included in this volume.