Left-Libertarianism
Again over at Henley's place, there is an interesting discussion of "Left-Libertarianism."
One poster argued: "From where I sit, and awful lot of libertarianism seems like an apologia for power, and a lot of the anti-government sentiment aligns all too well with the anti-democratic strain in conservatism."
I responded:
It is true that too many so-called libertarians try to justify, say, the power of multi-national corporations. But left-libertarians recognize that much of that power is tied into State power. Large corporations typically lobby for increased regulation of their industry, because the more red tape there is, the bigger their advantage over their small competitors. (A big company can much more easily afford full-time compliance staff.) They capture the bulk of export subsidies, get local governments to give them tax breaks and sieze the next site for their business through eminent domain. The elite rotate between government posts, lobbying firms, and corporate boards.
To a left-libertarian, the typical "progressive" solution to this problem is non-sensical: put even more power in the hands of the institution where power is already most concentrated! We suspect that however genuine the motives of "progressive" social reformers are, the increased concentration of power they propose will largely work to the benefit of the already powerful. We are true radicals in that we recommend going to the root of the problem, urging the rejection of all social relationships based on coercion. We do not suggest that will "fix everything" or bring about utopia, because we believe nothing can. But we do suggest it will result in a marginally better world.
One poster argued: "From where I sit, and awful lot of libertarianism seems like an apologia for power, and a lot of the anti-government sentiment aligns all too well with the anti-democratic strain in conservatism."
I responded:
It is true that too many so-called libertarians try to justify, say, the power of multi-national corporations. But left-libertarians recognize that much of that power is tied into State power. Large corporations typically lobby for increased regulation of their industry, because the more red tape there is, the bigger their advantage over their small competitors. (A big company can much more easily afford full-time compliance staff.) They capture the bulk of export subsidies, get local governments to give them tax breaks and sieze the next site for their business through eminent domain. The elite rotate between government posts, lobbying firms, and corporate boards.
To a left-libertarian, the typical "progressive" solution to this problem is non-sensical: put even more power in the hands of the institution where power is already most concentrated! We suspect that however genuine the motives of "progressive" social reformers are, the increased concentration of power they propose will largely work to the benefit of the already powerful. We are true radicals in that we recommend going to the root of the problem, urging the rejection of all social relationships based on coercion. We do not suggest that will "fix everything" or bring about utopia, because we believe nothing can. But we do suggest it will result in a marginally better world.
Gene, I enjoyed your summary explanation of left libertarianism. If you write regularly from a left libertarian perspective, would you consider contributing to leftlibertarian.org? It's a blog aggregator for left libertarian bloggers that I run. You can contact me at admin at-sign left libertarian period org.
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