[lbo-talk] How to explain things to (right-wing) libertarians

Steve Palmer spalmer999 at yahoo.com
Fri Mar 30 07:23:45 PDT 2007


--- andie nachgeborenen <andie_nachgeborenen at yahoo.com> wrote:
> This is rubbish.
Ooh ... how crushing.


> Libs are not the KKK and they are not
> "piles of poop."
And of course, since you can read, you know that's not what I said. Nor is it what I think. So the rest of your touching peroration about the value of libertarians is entirely beside the point.

I'll work with anyone. As a atheist, I don't see any need to argue with 'believers' - religion is not in the rational sphere, it's a problem of social delusion or mental health of course. Libertarians' faith simply revolves around a different god - the 'free market'. The KKK are just as irrational, hence my comparison. But they're more disturbing to intellectuals since they don't bother to erect fancy justifications for their prejudices or engage in argument. In the real world, the libertarians have no theory of agency, no vehicle to implement their programme, which is why they will forever tail the Republicans and their ilk who do. The KKK of course does.

If they're already 'on our side' as you assert, then I don't see any need to argue with them (about what? 'You're not supporting this for the right reason'?). If blind faith in the market keeps them from working with me, then no amount of 'explanation' is going to help. The reality of where this 'free market' leads is going to hit them personally like a 2x4 before too long, much more persuasively undermining their beliefs than intricate 'explanations'. That's why it seems a waste of time to me. Your arguments about how smart they are and their intellectual contribution etc seem applicable to just about anyone with a sophisticated (in the original sense of the word) ideology. Which makes libertarians not that special.

"I study a lot. That is one of the responsibilities of every revolutionary." Hugo Chavez.

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