Sure, whatever. It’s still a hateful, ignorant statement, and he held it up with zero commentary. If I quoted Pat Robertson on gay marriage in the same way, I’d be in the shithouse. Here’s the quote:
LIBERTARIANISM… “It appeals to their fantasies of being powerful, dynamic, innovative, self-reliant and self-actualised – as they dream they would be if only they were not hampered by supporting all their imagined inferiors.
It’s a philosophy for people whose delusional self-image bears no relation to their actual persona, who believe that everything they have accomplished has been due to personal virtues rather than ‘luck of the draw’.
They seem unable to comprehend that if they had been born in poverty in some third world nation, their ability to achieve anything would have been markedly different.
They can’t understand that progress comes from cooperation, not competition – despite the fact that if someone hadn’t taught them, they wouldn’t know how to wipe their own arse.” ~ Simon McWaters
Wow. Am I right?
This is a total misreading of Libertarianism, which is a pretty simple political philosophy to grasp: The maximum amount of freedom under the minimum amount of government. This extends out nicely: “the non-initiation of force,” “voluntary association,” “personal responsibility,” etc.
Libertariansim and benevolence are not mutually exclusive. In other words, libertarianism and objectivism are not the same thing. McWaters seems to conflate the two — a fairly common mistake, since it seems a number of libertarians come to the philosophy through Ayn Rand. (I’ve never read her stuff. I’m more of a Heinlein libertarian, if anything.) A guy like John Mackey gives lie to the idea of the “selfish libertarian.”
Regarding “Personal Virtues” v. “Luck of the Draw,” this isn’t a libertarian/authoritarian argument. A guy like Ray Charles can be born into poverty, lose his eyesight at an early age, and pull himself out of what he was dealt with personal virtue. Again, they’re not mutally exclusive. This argument is a nonstarter, in that it seems to assume that every libertarian was born with a lucky draw, and that’s why we’re so insufferably insistent on having our freedom.
Regarding “third world nations”: This rather proves the point. Take a look at the Liberty Index. Compare and contrast against a list of Third World countries. I don’t believe there’s a libertarian alive who would argue that their ability to achieve anything would be the same if they had been born in Malawi, with it’s 45.74 out of 100 score on the Liberty Index.
Cooperation vs. Competition — Actually, it’s both. We made it to the moon because 1) we worked together to do so and 2) we wanted to beat the Russians. The Packers won Super Bowl XVL because they worked together as a team to defeat the Steelers. Hell, McWaters’ mean little quote works because he’s cooperating with his intended audience against libertarians. It’s a push and pull universe.
And now, the coup de grâce of this quote: “[…] if someone hadn’t taught them, they wouldn’t know how to wipe their own arse.” Bravo, McWaters. Except …
I don’t want or need my government to be my parent. I want my parents to be my parents.
In closing, a libertarian anthem:
Impolite Topics 