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View Full Version : Is There Such Thing As Libertarian Democrat?




GopBlackList
11-12-2011, 09:54 PM
title says it all..discuss

bluesc
11-12-2011, 09:55 PM
No, because lizard people.

ryanmkeisling
11-12-2011, 09:58 PM
Noam Chomsky?

FreeTraveler
11-12-2011, 10:00 PM
Blue Republicans (http://themoderatevoice.com/115639/become-a-blue-republican-just-for-a-year/) come closest. They're socially liberal.

ninepointfive
11-12-2011, 10:02 PM
I had to goad a friend into calling himself a democrat after claiming he was a, "libertarian socialist".

Felt bad about it, because at least he's open to the idea, but he's a democrat through and through. Just because you like guns, doesn't mean you can be two opposite ends of the spectrum - at teh same time!! It's disgusting to see the disregard for reason, when he claims to be the smartest guy in the room.

moderate libertarian
11-12-2011, 10:08 PM
Bill Maher , liberal pro war pundit, comes to mind lol

heavenlyboy34
11-12-2011, 10:09 PM
JFK was a bit libertarian, as was Andrew Jackson. It's hard to find "plumb line" or "die hard" libertarians in any party. The party platforms, leadership, and owners/corporate sponsors pretty much keep libertarian policy out of public discussion. It took RP some 20 years and 2 presidential campaigns to "mainstream" libertarian talking points, and plenty of folks still ignore him. :(

heavenlyboy34
11-12-2011, 10:12 PM
I had to goad a friend into calling himself a democrat after claiming he was a, "libertarian socialist".

Felt bad about it, because at least he's open to the idea, but he's a democrat through and through. Just because you like guns, doesn't mean you can be two opposite ends of the spectrum - at teh same time!! It's disgusting to see the disregard for reason, when he claims to be the smartest guy in the room.
Sure it is, if you realize the myth of the left-right paradigm. ETA: why were you so interested in "labeling" your friend?

jtstellar
11-12-2011, 10:33 PM
if you plan to expand term libertarian into something that no longer has meaning, like 'what it means to be a republican' nowadays, sure, it can be a mix of anything.

MozoVote
11-12-2011, 10:40 PM
The belief, that we need government to accomplish good deeds that would never occur otherwise, is at the core of Democrats. It is the hub of their whole rationale. You can attach libertarian spokes to that hub ... maybe a great number of them, but IMHO it's not possible for a Democrat to "be" libertarian.

emazur
11-12-2011, 10:43 PM
Former Sen. Mike Gravel comes to mind, though it would be more accurate to call him a Democrat Libertarian.

BuddyRey
11-12-2011, 11:15 PM
Democrat is just a party, libertarian is a philosophy. So, of course there can be libertarian Democrats, just as there are libertarian Republicans like Ron Paul.

Let us not forget, the Democratic Party was founded by Thomas Jefferson. That's a party steeped in libertarian history that has sadly lost its way. If there are many libertarians within the party now, I sure hope they'll be able to wrest control from those who have left it so betrayed and disgraced that so many people needlessly flinch at the very word "Democrat."

RP Supporter
11-12-2011, 11:27 PM
Wasn't that Democrat who ran against Graham last time fairly libertarian? I think he was even a Paul supporter. Of course the party gave him no backing. They may have even given Alvin Greene more. :rolleyes:

cindy25
11-12-2011, 11:36 PM
Grover Cleveland; Larry McDonald

TCE
11-12-2011, 11:41 PM
Grover Cleveland; Larry McDonald

I feel as if 2014 will be a Democratic year, at least in the U.S. House/Senate level, so I would like to see if we can get some pro-liberty Democrats to run. Any Independent can register as a Democrat and we're good. The rhetoric will have to be different, but we can run our guys as Democrats. I will be getting to work on this probably this time next year.

Prime Liberty Movement Strategy: Run as Republicans in strong "R" years and Democrats in strong "D" years. Remember, political parties are only a label. This is especially the case at the State House/Senate level.

Inny Binny
11-13-2011, 12:03 AM
I had to goad a friend into calling himself a democrat after claiming he was a, "libertarian socialist".

Felt bad about it, because at least he's open to the idea, but he's a democrat through and through. Just because you like guns, doesn't mean you can be two opposite ends of the spectrum - at teh same time!! It's disgusting to see the disregard for reason, when he claims to be the smartest guy in the room.

Okay, but do you know what he was talking about? He could be one of three things:

- someone attaching the libertarian label to sound 'hip' and 'cool', or
- someone like Chomsky who is essentially libertarian in philosophy but supports large government in the meantime as he doesn't see anarchism as feasible in the near future, or
- someone that supports theories of libertarian socialism (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libertarian_socialism), who believe that the unrestricted free market will give rise to a socialistic structure (common ownership of means of production) and that the current capitalist structure has largely arisen due to government protection. Those (http://radgeek.com/) who (http://mutualist.blogspot.com/) endorse (http://all-left.net/) it, like any other libertarian, advocate the dismantling of any and all government institutions as soon as possible, but emphasise the welfare state far less than the corporate state (why abolish food stamps now when the reason many don't have access to food is due to government coercion?).

But the original question 'is there such a thing as a libertarian democrat?' is kind of silly, because it implicitly suggests that the Republican Party somehow supports a freer market than the Democratic Party, which is simply a load of nonsense.

John F Kennedy III
11-13-2011, 12:40 AM
No, because lizard people.

Lol. This.

ninepointfive
11-13-2011, 09:34 AM
Sure it is, if you realize the myth of the left-right paradigm. ETA: why were you so interested in "labeling" your friend?

Because you cannot be both ends of an entirely different spectrum at the same time. To mislabel yourself like that, while claiming to be libertarian - is quite offensive.


Okay, but do you know what he was talking about? He could be one of three things:

- someone attaching the libertarian label to sound 'hip' and 'cool', or

It's this. The guy is a flaming socialist, and a bandmember. I can't allow him to misrepresent us.

gerryb
11-13-2011, 03:03 PM
Grover Cleveland; Larry McDonald

Youtube McDonald if you don't know who he is. Could have been president if the commies didn't kill him.



Prime Liberty Movement Strategy: Run as Republicans in strong "R" years and Democrats in strong "D" years. Remember, political parties are only a label. This is especially the case at the State House/Senate level.

I agree with this sentiment, but it is difficult to win primaries when we split parties, and goes against the party rules to campaign/volunteer for a member of another party... Otherwise, if you're going to run, run as whatever party has the dominance in your district, and win the primary..

vechorik
11-13-2011, 03:13 PM
There's a group called "Democrats Against Agenda 21" that wants pro-choice and gay rights. They're "almost Republicans" LOL

TCE
11-13-2011, 04:16 PM
I agree with this sentiment, but it is difficult to win primaries when we split parties, and goes against the party rules to campaign/volunteer for a member of another party... Otherwise, if you're going to run, run as whatever party has the dominance in your district, and win the primary..

There are very few of "us" in the grand scheme of things, so that shouldn't be a huge issue. Your last sentence is effectively my sentiment.

eduardo89
11-13-2011, 04:40 PM
Larry McDonald was a democrat and probably te second greatest American politician of the 20th century after Ron Paul. He was, however, not a liberterian. He was a conservative.

Sad the Soviets killed him, he would have been an amazing president if he had run.