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The unchecked greed of libertarian ideology is potentially as destructive as fascism, luckily libertarian ideas will never be politically palatable.
by buttcoinslol 9y ago
The unchecked greed of libertarian ideology is potentially as destructive as fascism, luckily libertarian ideas will never be politically palatable.
- Anderkent 9y ago> potentially as destructive as fascism This is meaningless; you can substitute any other ideology you dislike (socialism, conservatism, anarchism, liberalism, whatever) and it makes just as much sense.
- buttcoinslol 9y agoExcept it isn't meaningless, libertarianism is morally and ethically bankrupt, not to mention wildly impractical. Most of these other ideologies account for collective effort for the greater good and a social safety net, which are two of the hundreds of things that current governments have that libertarians would like to dismantle.
- Anderkent 9y agoYou confuse anarchocapitalism with libertarianism. Something like 90% of libertarians I speak with are in favour of social safety nets (guaranteed basic income comes up a lot) and progressive taxation. Everyone believes in collective effort for the greater good. People just disagree about the best way to achieve this collective effort.
- buttcoinslol 9y agoFair enough, modern libertarian ideas about social safety nets may be more progressive than I realized. I'm surprised a Guaranteed Basic Income is advocated for by libertarians, but it's an idea I would like to see tested, I think it would cut down on a lot of the anger and other negative emotions associated with poverty that tend to keep people impoverished. On the second point, that's true. The same or similar outcomes can be achieved with different policies/incentives.
- jstanley 9y agoLibertarianism (at least, to me) is about not stopping people from doing something that isn't harming others. There's nothing at all morally or ethically bankrupt about it. If anything, libertarianism holds higher moral and ethical ground than any other ideology.
- knieveltech 9y agoHahaha that argument hinges on not harming others. Rent seeking and hoarding demonstrably harm others. Are we pretending those aren't pillars of capitalism?
- testvox 9y agoSure but capitalism isn't libertarianism. Libertarians tend to hate rent seeking and hording if you spent any time learning about them you would know those are two issues they take very seriously.
- knieveltech 9y agoFascinating (no sarcasm). Through what mechanism do libertarians propose to prevent these behaviors?
- Anderkent 9y agoUsually by lowering the barrier of entry due to regulatory restrictions that back 90% of rent seeking.
- knieveltech 9y agoHow do they support the rationale that rent-seeking is enabled by "regulatory restrictions" and not the near-impossibility of competing with a pile of capital several orders of magnitude larger than yours?
- 9y ago
- VMG 9y agoHow can an ideology based around property rights be greedy? Is it greedy to keep what is yours?
- zabana 9y agoAbsolutely not, however it is greedy to take what isn't. (ie Irak, Syria et al ...)
- VMG 9y agoWe're getting off-topic, but can you name a libertarian that is pro-war? Most are vocally anti-war.
- buttcoinslol 9y agoRon Paul advocated that we pull out of every foreign military installation we have and look inward. This action would cause such a huge vacuum of power that WW III is a foregone conclusion in that scenario. The lesson here? Libertarians have good ideas about: The war on drugs,
- VMG 9y agoYet he received more money from active duty military than all other candidates combined. Add this to your list: blowback.
- scandox 9y agoThe world is a club run for the benefit of its members, not a contract enslaving all future generations. Therefore property rights must be balanced against other considerations. The definition of greed is to want to keep what is yours in the face of its inutility to yourself and its absolute necessity to someone else.
- buttcoinslol 9y agoLibertarianism advocates for the privatization of EVERYTHING and the destruction of the social safety net. Have fun enforcing your property rights when the guy with more capital can drain you dry in the private court system. Most people who advocate libertarian ideas would be a serf/slave in a real libertarian paradise. I would also be a serf/slave, I have no illusions about that.
- exo762 9y agoYour opinion is just that your opinion. Everyone has one. As for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies - they are physical fact. When ideas and physical reality collide - ideas get smashed.