Ask a Libertarian: How should I respond to liberals and conservatives who say I'll "grow out of" libertarianism?

Welcome to Ask a Libertarian 2012 with Reason's Nick Gillespie and Matt Welch. They are the authors of the book, The Declaration of Independents: How Libertarian Politics Can Fix What's Wrong With America, coming out in paperback with a new foreword covering Occupy Wall Street and more, on June 26.

In this video, they answer the question:

"How should I respond to condescending liberals and conservatives who say I'll "grow out of" my libertarianism?" - sent by Dana Thompson

Produced by Meredith Bragg, Jim Epstein, Josh Swain, and Tracy Oppenheimer with help from Katie Hooks.

To watch answers from 2011's Ask a Libertarian series, go here.

Comments

[Zombie Jimbo]

"Fuck off slaver!", may be an option

[Zombie Jimbo]

Damn, I'm a registered Republican, and I can answer these. How about some hard questions?

[Emmerson Biggins]

I think "sanctimonious douchebag" would be acceptable in place of "slaver", given the context.

[tarran]

Yeah, because voting for people you know are lying is a great indication of a mature political philosophy.

[Episiarch]

See, tarran, now you don't get to sit at the table with the "adults". I'm sure you're very disappointed.

[tarran]

I'm no fan of hegemony, so naturally I am opposed to the grownup table hegemony.

[Sudden]

Jerry Sandusky: "I'll be a libertarian if that gets me seated at the kids table."

[sarcasmic]

If you want people to be controlled, you're not going to come out and say it.
But you're being honest in an odd way when you vote for the person who wants people to be controlled (and is also not willing to come out and say it).

[Brandybuck]

"You're too young to understand yet, but there are people out there who genuinely need to be controlled. They need to have some cop beat the shit out of them and shoot their dog. For the good of society as a whole. In time you'll understand this".

[Tonio]

Given the propensity of most politicians to lie, it's unavoidable. You just pick the one who lies least, and who most consistently agrees with you.

[NotSure]

I will simply reply and ask when will they grow out of liberalism/conservatism.

[R C Dean]

Since when is being dependent on the state a sign of maturity?

[sloopyinca]

Tell them you learned not to boss people around in elementary school.*

*Preferably a private school.

[sloopyinca]

-or-

Tell them "It's easier to mind my own business that everybody else's."

[The Hammer]

I've tried that. The conclusion was that libertarians are lazy and selfish.

[Killazontherun]

If you are not a libertarian when you are in your twenties, you don't have a heart. If you are not a libertarian by the time you are in your forties, you don't have a brain.

[Rasilio]

I wonder if Nick has that same slogan on his underpants?

[Killazontherun]

Why would you wonder that?

[sarcasmic]

I have it on poor authority that he wears these.

http://downtownprintwear.files.....=300h=300

[sloopyinca]

Better than Sandusky and his "No Child Left Behind" boxers.

[Mo' $parky]

I thought his read "I Left No Child's Behind."

[Nando]

Only 4 year olds don't like to share with other people.

[sloopyinca]

share

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

[tarran]

The infantile don't respect other people's stuff. They want it all for themselves.

[Episiarch]

Ignore the completely obvious sockpuppet.

[tarran]

Why won't you share your comment threads with trolls Epi? HAven't you attained the maturity of a four-year-old yet?

[Mr. FIFY]

We're adults talking about other adults here, Nando.

Go tend to your sippy cup.

[Virginian]

Responding to troll.

I work with kids actually. One of the things that pisses me off more then anything else is when a kid brings his own toy and some other workers makes him share it with other kids.

We have toys owned in common by the facility, and those must be shared, but if little Jimmy doesn't want asshole Tommy to play with his toy, I won't force him. This blows some people's minds. But I think your shit is your shit, and just because some whiny looter wants it doesn't mean you have to give it to him.

This is apparently an immature attitude.

[Mr. FIFY]

How dare you help children assert their property rights! That shit's... racist.

[Pro Libertate]

Pure, cleansing flame.

[SugarFree]

If I'm going to be called immature, I just embrace it: I urinate on them.

[tarran]

Is your pee sweet?

[SugarFree]

You bet. Just like other products that issue from it...

[Killazontherun]

Hmm, add yeast to an already sterilized liquid source, and call it Piss Water, the ultimate lager.

[SugarFree]

They already sell Michelob Ultra.

[Killazontherun]

Back in the 90's I wrote up a proposal to the Ford Modeling Agency to sell ice cream that came from the milk of their supermodels. Flavors of vanilla, strawberry, and chocolate based upon the race of the models. They never responded, but I bet they actually sell the stuff at super secret sex clubs in Berlin. The models probably even hand feed the clientele.

[PaganPriestess]

Didn't we see this in "Clockwork Orange"?

[Killazontherun]

Wait. The strawberry was indeed based upon hair color and not race, just like the rape scene in Clockwork Orange so indeed there may have been some inspiration from the movie version.

[GILMORE]

How should I respond to condescending liberals and conservatives who say I'll "grow out of" my libertarianism?"

Libertarian: "Press the button next to your throne that releases the trapdoor to your in-house starving-shark-tank, DUH."

[Killazontherun]

How should I respond to condescending liberals and conservatives who say I'll "grow out of" my libertarianism?"

'But growing into an establishmentarian tool made you fat, weak and just waiting for that Social Security check every two weeks to sustain you until you die a comfortable death like the fat and weak slob you are' or some variation thereof is how I respond.

[T o n y]

You will say but Ron Paul is ancient and never grew out of it. There are some versions of Santa Claus people are expected to grow out of, such as Santa Claus. Other versions of him people believe in until they die, like God and, occasionally, the magical market.

[Mr. FIFY]

"Santa Claus"

You bring up a good point, Tony... a lot of people view the source of welfare handouts the same way kids view Saint Nick.

[Mr. FIFY]

BTW, is Nando your special friend? I see he blathered upthread with a similar liberal simpleton comment.

[ant1sthenes]

Or the state as artificial God.

[Mr. FIFY]

Oh, they view the state as an *organic* God.

Just ask Tony up there. He'll vouch for that.

[T o n y]

Straw man. I'm rigorously anti-magical thinking and believe the state to be doomed to be forever imperfect, not that we shouldn't work on improving it.

[Mr. FIFY]

Bullshit. You view the state as reverently as any fundie would view his church.

[T o n y]

You need to think that to justify your own magical thinking, but it's explicitly not true.

[Mr. FIFY]

I'm not a religious person.

Which means I don't worship the state OR "God".

[AlmightyJB]

Ask the liberal why they would continue to support an ideology that has killed more innocent people then any other. Ask the conservatives why all the conservative candidates are douchbags.

[Mr. FIFY]

And *that*, is why you are almighty, JB.