Should Libertarians Be Conservatives? by Laurence M. Vance

In a recent article for the online journal Public Discourse, conservative Jay Richards asks the question: “Should Libertarians Be Conservatives?: The Tough Cases of Abortion and Marriage.”

Richards is Director and Senior Fellow of the Center on Wealth, Poverty, and Morality at the Discovery Institute, a Visiting Scholar at the Institute for Faith, Work, and Economics, and co-author, with James Robison, of the New York Times bestselling book Indivisible: Restoring Faith, Family, and Freedom Before It’s Too Late (FaithWords, 2012). Richards and I have many common interests: Christianity, theology, economics, politics. He sounds like my kind of guy – except that he’s not.

Richards is your typical “criticize the welfare state while you support the warfare state conservative.” I wasn’t sure at first, but after looking at his new book Indivisible, and especially his remarks in chapter five (“Bearing the Sword”) on pacifism, just war, the war on terror, the military, and defense spending, my suspicions were confirmed.

Richards maintains in his Public Discourse article that libertarians “tend to disagree with conservatives on social issues.” He views the issues of abortion and marriage as “the two greatest sources of conflict between libertarians and conservatives.” He believes that “there is a tacit if inarticulate conservative wisdom that recognizes that the libertarian commitment to free markets and limited government is best preserved within a broader conservative context.” He posits that this “conservative wisdom” should appeal to the “‘everyman libertarian’ who values limited governments, individual rights, and free markets, but is not otherwise committed to a deeply libertarian philosophy.” Richards concludes: “We conservatives need to strengthen our base without alienating our near allies. One way to do that is to show how the central convictions of ‘everyman libertarians’ can find a peaceful repose in a conservative home.”

Baloney.

One does not have to be a conservative to oppose abortion and defend traditional marriage. And one should certainly not be a conservative when it comes to other important issues.

Laurence M Vance (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I have argued that because the non-aggression axiom is central to libertarianism, and because force is justified only in self-defense, and because it is wrong to threaten or initiate violence against a person or his property, and because killing is the ultimate form of aggression that, to be consistent, libertarians should be opposed to abortion.

If conservatives are so committed to…………

EXCERPT

via Should Libertarians Be Conservatives? by Laurence M. Vance.

Related articles

• Myths About Militarism and the Military (txwclp.org)
• Myths About Militarism and the Military (lewrockwell.com)
• Why do libertarians support conservative parties? (clubtroppo.com.au)
• Should Libertarians Be Conservatives? (txwclp.org)
• Should Libertarians Be Conservatives? (lewrockwell.com)
• ‘Thomas Paine vs George Washington’: Santorum and Beck Part Ways on Libertarianism (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Take the Libertarian Quiz (lewrockwell.com)
• (“Santorum explicitly declared, “I am not a libertarian, and I fight very strongly against libertarian influence within the Republican Party and the conservative movement”) Why Santorum’s anti-libertarianism is a problem (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• The Young Are Libertarians (lewrockwell.com)
• Should Libertarians Be Conservatives?: The Tough Cases of Abortion and Marriage (palamas.info)
• GUNNY G: How Many Presently Calling Themselves (and others) CONSERVATIVES MAY Not BE Even Good Americans! (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• The Koch-Cato Power Opera (lewrockwell.com)
• Why I don’t Call Myself a Libertarian (rossbot.wordpress.com)
• Libertarians Find Their Audience In 2012 Race (wnyc.org)
• Progressive Information Project: Critiques Of Libertarianism, Part 2 (crooksandliars.com)
• MIKE RAPPAPORT ON ANDREW BREITBART, LIBERTARIANS, AND CONSERVATIVES: “Alas, I think there is quite … (pjmedia.com)
• Are right/left friendships even possible? (johnsevencollection.wordpress.com)
• Are Libertarians Part of the Conservative Movement? – Politics and Public Opinion – AEI (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• The Cultural Conservatives (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• The Anti-Libertarian (andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com)
• Has the “Kochtopus” Opened Libertarian Eyes? (economistsview.typepad.com)
• Breitbart on libertarians in 2012 (reason.com)
• The New York Times Needs Help Badly… (delong.typepad.com)
• Libertarian-Leaning Young Voters Unthrilled By Major Parties (txwclp.org)
• FRSFreeStateNow: “What Is the Conservative Movement?”: Classical Conservatism vs Neoconservatism (frsfreestatenow.wordpress.com)
• ALAN STANG: REPUBLICAN PARTY, RED FROM THE START by Alan Stang ” CITIZEN.BLOGGER.1984+ GUNNY.G BLOG.EMAIL (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunnyg: the People (and Writers) Seem to Be Becoming More Edgy and Outspoken… (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• The view from “the Archie Bunker crowd” (viewfrommiddleclass.wordpress.com)
• ALAN STANG: REPUBLICAN PARTY, RED FROM THE START by Alan Stang ” CITIZEN.BLOGGER.1984+ GUNNY.G BLOG.EMAIL (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• The Cultural Conservatives (theconservativehillbilly.wordpress.com)
• Gingrich Calls for Universal Right to Bear Arms at NRA Forum-UN Treaty, Is Fox News Reporting This? ” CITIZEN.BLOGGER.1984+ GUNNY.G BLOG.EMAIL (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Chicago–Communist Paradise of the Midwest… (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• The Obama Administration Looks To Be Close To A Breakdown……….. (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: The First Gung Ho Marine ~ GUNG HO! ~ According To Evans F. Carlson (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Andrew Breitbart’s Autopsy Report Lacks Important Answers and Raises More Questions by Paul Huebl (viewfrommiddleclass.wordpress.com)
• Do you know “gunnyg”? (trueconservative.me)
• The Daily Bell – Nelson Hultberg on the Debut of SPOiLER, His New Political Party and How Ron Paul Could Win the Presidency (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Do you know “gunnyg”? (trueconservativedotme.wordpress.com)
• Barack Obama Russian Plant? New Evidence (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• The Patriot Webmaster’s Creed (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Communism Comes To America Earlier Than We Think | revisedhistory (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Betty Freauf — Ron Paul Was There All the Time (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• A WORLD GONE MAD By Paul Proctor (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• We’ve Improved on TIME’s New Cover (genomega1.wordpress.com)
• Who Will Stop the Power-Mad Man in the White House? (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• ( CLICK 4 PICS!!!!!) ~ Painting of Obama Trampling Constitution Resurfaces, Artist’s New Work Tells ‘Enslaved’ Americans to ‘Wake Up!’ – Yahoo! News (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Timothy N. Baldwin — Candidate for Montana Attorney General, Jim Shockley, Holds Shocking View of the Constitution (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• If I Were the Devil: Paul Harvey (Warning for a Nation) (audio) (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• ROME IS BURNING, NERO IS FIDDLING By Lynn Stuter (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• “More and More Weather Modification Programs Are Planned Without Your Knowledge or Consent” (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: You Betcha! Real Americans, Restore the Republic !!!!!!!!!! (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• (GUNNY G RESPONSE…) ~Five Ways Conservatives Will Have to Sell Their Souls if Romney Wins (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: Conspiracy Theories Persist At All Levels; But Are They True or False? (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: to Be Perfectly Blunt… (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: Fear On The Internet?: Well, Maybe… How Bout You? (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• “Mammas Please Let Your Babies Grow up to be…. (maddmedic.wordpress.com)
• Citizen Blogger, Gunny G: Request Assistance of Real Americans To Become Citizen Bloggers USA! It’s lonesome out here!. (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: Better Than A Sergeant? ~ Ask Chesty Puller! (via ~ The GUNNY “G” BLOG & E-MAIL ~) (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: I Always Say The Reader Responses Are AT Least AsGood As The Article Itself! (Scroll Down For responses – this one previously posted here…) (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: Bloggers: The “New Pamphleteers” (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• GUNNY G: And So, The Question as to Just When Communism/Socialism Arose In America? (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: GUESS WHO? (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• GUNNY G: FYI: To Gunny G’s Readers Re Dead-End Links Due To $/Subscription Articles/Blogs… (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• GUNNY G: FYI: To Gunny G’s Readers Re Dead Links Due To $/Subscription Articles/Blogs… (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Citizen Blogger, Gunny G: Request Assistance of Real Americans To Become Citizen Bloggers USA! It’s lonesome out here!. (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• (Update) Gunny G Inquiry: FDR 1935 Attempt to Eliminate The 48 States and Implement 9 Regional Governments…Has Anyone Written On This? (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: GUESS WHO IS PACKING THE SEATS…+ STANDING ROOM ONLY!? (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Gunny G: THE RON PAUL CROWDS YOU DO NOT SEE VIA MSM !!!!! (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Was America sold? ~ BLOGGER.GUNNY.G.1984 . ~ BLOG & EMAIL ~ BLOGGER.GUNNY.G.1984 . ~ (BLOG & EMAIL) (gunnyg.blogspot.com)
• (Gunny G: Dog Story) Dog ‘flipping’ could be a concern for pet owners (gunnyg.wordpress.com)
• Leaderless Resistance by Louis Beam (via ~ THE GUNNY “G” BLOGS ~) (gunnyg.wordpress.com)