Labeling My Political Philosphy

I have spent a considerable amount of time mulling over where I stand politically. I often try to identify with certain schools of political thought only to find different groups having certain attributes I don't like. While I generally vote Republican you will probably never hear me call myself one (I would rather not identify with a party that has abandoned its identity altogether). I often lean Libertarian, with certain non-anarchist caveats. On the anarchy note, however, I have embraced some principles of modern anarcho-capitalism. In any case, recently, while doing some reading on the nature of government, I stumbled upon the Cato Institute's description of where they stand within the political spectrum. After I read it, I sat back and said, "yeah, that's it."

From the Cato Institute:

Today, those who subscribe to the principles of the American Revolution--individual liberty, limited government, the free market, and the rule of law--call themselves by a variety of terms, including conservative, libertarian, classical liberal, and liberal. We see problems with all of those terms. "Conservative" smacks of an unwillingness to change, of a desire to preserve the status quo. Only in America do people seem to refer to free-market capitalism--the most progressive, dynamic, and ever-changing system the world has ever known--as conservative. Additionally, many contemporary American conservatives favor state intervention in some areas, most notably in trade and into our private lives.

"Classical liberal" is a bit closer to the mark, but the word "classical" connotes a backward-looking philosophy.

Finally, "liberal" may well be the perfect word in most of the world--the liberals in societies from China to Iran to South Africa to Argentina are supporters of human rights and free markets--but its meaning has clearly been corrupted by contemporary American liberals.

The Jeffersonian philosophy that animates our work has increasingly come to be called "libertarianism" or "market liberalism." It combines an appreciation for entrepreneurship, the market process, and lower taxes with strict respect for civil liberties and skepticism about the benefits of both the welfare state and foreign military adventurism.

The market-liberal vision brings the wisdom of the American Founders to bear on the problems of today. As did the Founders, it looks to the future with optimism and excitement, eager to discover what great things women and men will do in the coming century. Market liberals appreciate the complexity of a great society, they recognize that socialism and government planning are just too clumsy for the modern world. It is--or used to be--the conventional wisdom that a more complex society needs more government, but the truth is just the opposite. The simpler the society, the less damage government planning does. Planning is cumbersome in an agricultural society, costly in an industrial economy, and impossible in the information age. Today collectivism and planning are outmoded and backward, a drag on social progress.

Market liberals have a cosmopolitan, inclusive vision for society. We reject the bashing of gays, China, rich people, and immigrants that contemporary liberals and conservatives seem to think addresses society's problems. We applaud the liberation of blacks and women from the statist restrictions that for so long kept them out of the economic mainstream. Our greatest challenge today is to extend the promise of political freedom and economic opportunity to those who are still denied it, in our own country and around the world.

There you have it.

Here is My American Story

I sent the following to the Obama Team with the following link: Your Story

Congratulations to Mr. Obama on winning the election. This is truly an historic milestone for the United States and the world.

On January 20, 2009, in accordance with Article II, Section I of the United States Constitution, Mr. Obama will raise his right hand and make an oath before Almighty God saying: "I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States." To preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. Senator Obama will soon be President Obama, the executor of this awesome and solemn task. Unfortunately, Mr. Obama, in the past, has overtly expressed his distaste for this great document. He has even gone as far to say that he feels the Constitution is incomplete; that it is a document of negative liberites. With all due respect to Mr. Obama, I would take this opportunity to point out that the Founders recognized the need to restrain government. If I could highlight, underscore, bold, and italicize that statement I would. Government is, by its very nature, an organization prone to growth. As time weathers its founding institutions, our government has grown wildly beyond its original intended purpose.

While I am hopeful of the coming Obama Administration, I will not be holding my breath for Mr. Obama to be the new Constitutionalist in the White House. Indeed, even the Republican Presidents in the latter half of the previous century did little or nothing to protect the tenets of that document.

To Mr. Obama directly: The Constitution is not a series of suggestions or guidelines. It is the law which you will soon swear to uphold and defend. The ability to express ideas (like on talk radio for example) or the right to keep and bear arms is spelled out clearly. These rights, sir, are granted by God. Your job is to protect them. I look forward to your support of my God-given rights.

It will now be my policy to sign every post with the Gadsden Flag, as perhaps nothing better embodies the spirit of resistance to tyranny in government.