Nick Gillespie on Libertarianism, Why Gary Johnson Is a Success, Trump, Clinton, and Millennials

Also discusses where Rand Paul went wrong on "Part of the Problem" podcast with Dave Smith. Listen now!

Last Friday, I appeared on Part of the Problem, a twice-weekly podcast co-hosted by Dave Smith, a standup comic and self-made libertarian currently housed somewhere in that hipster's paradise, Brooklyn. It's an irreverent, wide-rangind, and ribald conversation covering whether Gary Johnson's 2016 run has been a net good for libertarianism (obviously, I think), where Rand Paul went wrong in his bid for the GOP presidential nomination, growing up in and around New York City at very different periods of time, why I think millennials have a real shot at defining their own lives unknown to previous generations, and more.

You can listen along by clicking below. Scroll down for more options and information about Part of the Problem.

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Follow co-host Mike Brancatelli (not present for the podcast, alas).

Part of the Problem is part of the GaS Digital Network, which produces over 15 hours of live content a week. Check out more info here.

Listen and subscribe on iTunes.

Attention, New York Area Reasonoids: I'll be debating Walter Block in Manhattan tomorrow about whether libertarians should vote for Trump or not next week (Smith is the warm-up act). Tickets are free but must be reserved. Go here for more information.

Comments

[Brochettaward]

I, too, have a rash, and want to know what Hillary can do to help me.

[Hyperion]

Don't you go and worry your pretty little head none, mama gonna take care of you.

/DB

[kokoy]

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[Hugh Akston]

What the heck is a self-made libertarian? Is he one of those guys who makes his own clothes out of fabric remnants?

[AlmightyJB]

One who doesn't inherit their orphan slaves and diamond mines. We shouldn't look down upon them.

[Hyperion]

+1 industrial size barrel of monocle polish

[GILMORE?]

What the heck is a self-made libertarian?

Its when you make it at home instead of buying it in the store, duh

[Radioactive]

knitted his own asshole from scratch...

[Ken Shultz]

"Millennials have a real shot at defining their own lives unknown to previous generations."

Yeah, they can define their own lives--any way they're told.

[AlmightyJB]

As long as they're in full agreement with whomever is in charge of the collective that day, what's the problem?

[Ken Shultz]

They can define their own lives--within the boundaries that are set to protect them.

I remember when punk rock first became a thing, the cops and everybody freaked out because we weren't rebelling within the approved parameters. It was like they were enforcing the pop culture equivalent of a free speech zone. It's okay to rebel! But you're supposed to grow your hair long, smoke tons of pot, and listen to Zeppelin.

Now they've changed the normal parameters of rebellion to include punk rock, tattoos, etc. I'm not sure the millennials are capable of rebelling outside of approved parameters. Probably the weirdest thing you can be these days is a Christian or a redneck or maybe a Muslim--not that the latter is a thing with them.

[Hyperion]

What's good for the hive is good for the bee. Didn't you lurnt nuthin in schoolz?

[Hyperion]

But they're going to able to choose to be told, right? I mean choose who tells them what to do. Isn't that the same as freedom?

[Ken Shultz]

Yeah, freedom is the right to choose the same master as everyone else--and learning to like it.

And the people who object to that are either too old to understand or just not hip at all.

[gaoxiaen]

Yep.

http://thelibertarianrepublic......n-hillary/

[LynchPin1477]

I want Johnson to be a success and I think he's done good things (though he's been a mixed bag) but let's see how he does in the election before getting too ahead of ourselves. 5% would be really nice.

[Hyperion]

I'm going to guess you need a decimal. .5% is more like it. If he gets 5% I'll be very surprised.

[AlmightyJB]

I think he'll do better than that but not much. 3 or 4 maybe, 5 would be pretty damn good considering basically a non-existent campaign where your VP is shilling for Hillary.

[Radioactive]

.5 or 5 what fucking difference does it make?

[R C Dean]

+1 at this point

[GILMORE?]

Dave Smith on Gary Johnson

His criticism there is a pretty significant part of why I think Johnson hasn't been much of a success.

[AlmightyJB]

Yeah, I've watched that before. Good stuff.

[Hyperion]

Oh come now. Gary has been a roaring success story at embarrassing the hell out of libertarians. Give him some credit.

[WTF]

But seriously, what the fuck is a Leppo?

[AlmightyJB]

People with Hansen's disease do not appreciate the term Leppo.

[GILMORE?]

I think he'll do a solid 3-4%, maybe even hit the target 5%

I just don't think its much of a success. the net-net is really how the party brand has been either improved or diminished, and what sort of characterizartion its been given.

For all Ron Paul supporter's Alex-Jonesy-goofiness, Ron at least could stand up and talk very passionately and intelligently about topics, and could manhandle adversarial interviewers with aplomb. He wasn't a rockstar, but he had enough charisma and intelligence and sincerity and wit to come across as a "good guy with different ideas". Even when some of those ideas were a bit kooky or even sometimes wrong.

Gary? He doesn't get past the first few basics; no one really cares about his ideas because they're still wondering what the hell he's looking for in the room while he's talking. Its like he's wondering if he left something in the oven. He comes across as dopey, flaky, simple, dull, and lacking conviction. He doesn't sound like he loves what he does, or has passion for his own ideas. Its more of a "Why Not?"-pitch, rather than "Here's Why"

I'm still voting for the guy, but its with a sense of disappointment that we can't do better.

[AlmightyJB]

And also unlike Paul, he doesn't even seem all that sure about his principles.

[LynchPin1477]

I think he's sure about his principals. I just don't think he's sure of the best way to sell those principles without sounding crazy.

[AlmightyJB]

He doesn't sound like it. The "I'm not talking about heroin" moment seemed like total politician bs.

[GILMORE?]

note: by "party brand" i really mean libertarians, not the LP specifically

if there's any bright side here, its that some people might start actually thinking about 3rd parties more seriously, even if they don't vote for them this time around. And that's not so much due to Gary, per se, as the intellectual decrepitude of the major parties.

[Pat (PM)]

D'you reckon anyone has ever actually thought to themselves "I have to go find out what Nick Gillespie thinks about this issue"? I mean, I know it's pure no-nothing yokelism to fall short of voraciously gorging on Nick and Matt's collective cock, but seriously, is there a more boring, unoriginal, uninteresting, line toeing caricature of a political commentator this side of Salon?

[GILMORE?]

is there a more boring, unoriginal, uninteresting, line toeing caricature of a political commentator this side of Salon?

You mean aside from everyone @ Vox, Huffpo, PostEverything, The Fix, and [insert random NYT op-ed writer]?

yes. they're all pretty much worse than nick.

we complain, but the truth is that most of us are here because this is the last stop before complete rejection of political-commentary altogether. Reason folks are the best house in a bad-neighborhood.

[Hyperion]

"I'll be debating Walter Block in Manhattan tomorrow about whether libertarians should vote for Trump"

But what about the libertarian case for Hillary? Why you hate Hillary?

[AlmightyJB]

This "libertarian" would be happy to make that case.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/31/.....index.html

[Nativist, Racist & Xenophobe]

The more I see of that guy, the more he reminds me of W.C. Fields. Without the humor.

[Radioactive]

cause she's a screaming douche bag from hell?

[Cynical Asshole]

where Rand Paul went wrong in his bid for the GOP presidential nomination

By not being a big enough attention whoring blowhard? 2016: The Year of the Attention Whore.

[Brochettaward]

Did anyone actually listen to this thing who would summarize the dumb shit Nick said for us?

[GILMORE?]

I'll do it, but i gotta wait till lunch

[Just Say'n]

Does Gillespie really think it's cool for a fifty year-old man to wear a leather jacket? It's only slightly less of a douchey trademark than Bono's stupid sun glasses.

[GILMORE?]

The Jacket cares nothing for your petty human aesthetics

[Pay up, Palin's Buttplug!]

NPR's Planet Money says Johnson's proposals are backed by economists across the political spectrum (and he is the only one)

[Nick Gillespie]

At the risk of completely farking the space-time continuum I direct you to this hat tip in an article inspired by this comment:

http://reason.com/blog/2016/10.....ns-economi

[Nick Gillespie]

At the risk of completely farking the space-time continuum I direct you to this hat tip in an article inspired by this comment:

http://reason.com/blog/2016/10.....ns-economi

[The Bearded Hobbit]

Note to self: Leather jackets do not protect from squirrel attacks.

... Hobbit

[Canman]

Thanks for the download link. Now that wasn't so hard, was it?

[AlmightyJB]

In other words, a normal person.