Political Lemming Meme

[akaihyo]

As I first read it.

Those who know me

You are a Social Liberal (85% permissive) and an... Economic Conservative (88% permissive) You are best described as a: Libertarian Link: The Politics Test on OkCupid.com: Free Online Dating

Comments

[akaihyo.livejournal.com]

Are you one of those Libertarian-Democrats who are occasionally mentioned then? Or Left-Libertarians as they are sometimes called.

Interestingly, in European usage, Libertarians are assumed to be left wing.

[xuande.livejournal.com]

I'm not really sure what a left-libertarian is. I'm definitely a liberal in the modern sense, because I like the idea of a publicy-funded safety net and I think government ought to intervene when power is stacked against individuals in important matters, like the mandatory binding arbitration clauses that are very difficult to avoid if you want to open a bank account, get cellphone service, or buy health insurance.

On the other hand, I'm not a fan of publicly-funded social experiments that go beyond necessities. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the mortgage interest tax exemption, and the rest of the push to get people who can't afford to own houses to buy them come to mind. I'm also generally in favor of free trade, with sanctions only to be used as a bargaining tool against nations that don't respect human rights.

And, of course, I'm utterly against things being made illegal simply because some people find them disgusting or offensive.

[akaihyo.livejournal.com]

An outline of left-libertarianism here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left_libertarianism).

As to social safety nets, I remain unconvinced that the government is the best provider of such, but I am certain that the Federal Government should not be involved. Such things should be as close to the people they are helping and extremely limited in scope.

While I think home-owning is a good, I agree that systems should not be distorted to encourage it. Though the current tax code is nothing but a system that tries to force certain kinds of behavior through economic rewards and punishments.

And definitely agreed on your final paragraph.