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Categories: Opinion, Politics
Tags: Brussels, Competition, EU, Libertarianism, Ludwig von Mises, Mises Circle, Nigel Farage, opinion, Politics
A good friend over in Brussels has sent me news of a competition that some readers may be interested in.
The Mises Circle, a libertarian group that meets in the European Parliament, is running a competition to find the best new definition of Libertarianism. Here are the details….
The Challenge
The competition is to be judged by Nigel Farage, and the prize is – and I quite – “€50 cash (tax free)”.
To enter, send your definition, name and contact details to michael.jose@europarl.europa.eu by midnight on the 13th February 2011.
There is one catch – if you win, you have to collect your prize in person in Brussels, so maybe it would be better to view this as €50 towards the cost of a trip to the heart of darkness our beloved European capital.
11 Responses
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Rather than journey to the maw of Beelzebub, I think I’d be tempted to donate it towards the cost of roof repairs……
No way keep them in one parliament – really, how many do they need?
Ignoring rule number 4:
Libertarianism is everything Authoritarianism is not
To me, it ultimately boils down to
“Leave me the fuck alone”
I have ruled your submission inadmissable on the grounds that you have broken the rules of the competition. I realise that this is authoritarian, but there have to be rules, even for Libertarians.
Libertarianism is simply the belief that ‘we the people’ can be trusted to run and manage our own affairs without the ‘helping hand’ of government.
The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’
Ronald Reagan.
“No, coercion, no fraud, and everything that does no harm is permitted”
Libertarians are united by an opposition to statism- the belief in political authority as the source of social and economic wealth and stability- and militarism, to cultural intolerance (including sexism, racism, and homophobia), and to the prevailing corporatist “capitalism” falsely called a free market. This is true, regardless of what sub-ideology any given Libertarian may adhere to- we are Friedmanites, Conservatives, Rothbardians, Misesians, Voluntaryists, as well as Mutualists, Chomskyites, and libeterian Socialists, and countless others. Our main claim: Voluntary social relationships are superior, both ethically and practically, to coercive ones, and should be preferred wherever possible to do so.
Exactly 100 words!
“Live as free men, but do not allow your freedom to be a cover-up for evil”
This came from St Peter. Hardly a libertarian, but a pretty succinct summary.
Libertarianism, like all things, is what is left when you have defined what it is not. It is not anything static, as it used to be applied to certain left-wing anarchists, and now it is used for hard-core liberals slash free-marketers slash anti-statists. With a nudge and a blink one could define nowadays’ libertarians as Mandevillains, or Greed-is-good-guys, following the “private vices, public benefits” idea. But frankly saying libertarians are just wannabe-librarians with their own ideas of how best to organise things and an innate adversity to laid-up rules would not be far off the mark.