1. Home
  2. News & Issues
  3. Civil Liberties
Tom Head

Tom's Civil Liberties Blog

By Tom Head, About.com Guide to Civil Liberties

You Might Not Be a Libertarian

Sunday August 30, 2009

Sometime around 1980, the word "liberal" became an expletive. Now we're witnessing the same thing happening to the word "conservative," and folks on the right are starting to switch to the "libertarian" label instead.

The trouble is that in order to be a libertarian, you have to actually be interested in preserving personal liberties--more interested, at any rate, than either liberals or conservatives are. And this is where things can get tricky, as one DailyKos contributor put it in his
"Top 10 Signs You Might Not Be a Libertarian." My personal favorite:

9. If you believe you have an inalienable right to attend Presidential townhalls brandishing a loaded assault rifle, but that arresting participants inside for wearing a pink shirt is an important public safety precaution, there's a chance you're dangerously unbalanced, but no chance you're a Libertarian.

What are some other signs that you might not be a real libertarian? Post your suggestions in the comments field below.

Related: What is a Libertarian?

Comments

No comments yet. Leave a Comment

Leave a Comment

Line and paragraph breaks are automatic. Some HTML allowed: <a href="" title="">, <b>, <i>, <strike>

Explore Civil Liberties

By Category

About.com Special Features

Holiday Central

What to eat, where to go, fun things to do and how to save money on the perfect gifts. More >

Weird Breaking News

A daily look at some of the oddest (and dumbest) crimes around. More >

  1. Home
  2. News & Issues
  3. Civil Liberties

©2009 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company.

All rights reserved.