“It’s our party and I’ll cry if I want to. You would cry too if it happened to you.”
Once upon a time, the Libertarian party had a clear agenda of political conservatism and social liberalism. We Libertarians meant it when we said that the Constitution was a contract that should be honored, that States Rights were real, and that citizens were free to make lifestyle choices provided they did not interfere with the rights of their neighbors.
When Ron Paul, the Libertarian leaning Republican, ran for president, he struck a chord among Republicans who were appropriately concerned with their party’s tendency to cater to big business and big banks and use public monies to subsidize the already rich. These folks also didn’t like the Democrat tendency to build big government and rescue people from facing responsibility. They were angry at our government being co-opted at every turn by special interests. The Libertarian foundation that is at the heart of every American percolated up and things were looking up for the country. Ron Paul got through to them.
But our anger made us vulnerable. Anger often does. The Fox News pundits and other opportunists sensed that anger co-opted us. Our authentic Libertarian issues were lost in a sea of righteous anger. Republicans who take a stance of nasty negativity and leverage the tragedy of 911 into sloganeering and warmongering undermine the potential unity of our country.
What is the worst of the Tea Party agenda? It is anger. But anger must be turned into a truly actionable agenda. It is not enough to kick the bums out. It is never enough! Politicians who pander to self righteousness and do not hold fellow politicians accountable for positive outcomes is are bad politicians. Be mad at them!
I don’t blame us for being angry. I understand the intoxication of righteousness and I enjoy it myself. Look at my own self righteousness embedded in this opinion piece. But we should be fed up with the spin doctors and the weasels who manipulate us into nasty polarities and the folks who operate as the front men for the mob. There is always a threat behind outraged people. Even good politicians and good people are tempted to wait it out or sell out and identify with the mob. Look at the weak minded and self serving addicts of power who represent us in our State Houses and our Congress who now tout the Tea Party. Look at how a promising Libertarian leaning politician like Nikki Haley has been co-opted into Palin’s presidential agenda. Look at how Ralph Norman, ever the opportunist, has jumped onto the Tea Party band wagon.
Let me say this to you. Reject the puffed up chest pounders who subvert Libertarian ideals. Reject the politics of no, not that, no, not this, no, nothing, know nothing nowhere men “sitting in their nowhere lands making all their nowhere plans for nobody”. Your heart and head has room to stand for principles, to shore up and build our nation to withstand the shocks and arrows the future will bring. I’m sorry if you are lost today in the Tea Party. But for God’s sake, get up tomorrow and think! Figure out what you want for our country. Sober up. Be one of the activists who accept the need to take us somewhere and fix what is broken. Don’t let your anger get in the way of recognizing manipulation by party hacks of either party.
Libertarians are a small minority party, but we stand for something. We stand for the constitution and for small government and individual liberty. I’m a little guy running for a little office in a little State hoping to do a little good. Help me have a voice. Find your own voice, and argue with me and your fellow citizens about what is best for all of us. Let go of the rage. Think about our values. Think about our forefathers. We have a contract with and for America – the Constitution. That’s the place to start! If you want to take our country back, take it back to its founding principles!
