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Being Libertarian

Theresa May is No Margaret Thatcher The Right Engle Being Libertarian The U.K. Conservative Party released its election manifesto Thursday, ahead of the June 8th general election. The manifesto proves one thing without doubt: Theresa May is no Margaret Thatcher. During her more than a decade as prime minister, Margaret ... and more »

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Theresa May is No Margaret Thatcher The Right Engle - Being Libertarian

Doth Protest Too Much is the title of my new column series which will take place every month as a chance for me to speak more personally to my audiences.

The key difference between this column and my articles will be that the column will be far less historically analytical, and instead, more in tune with modern events or culture. It will be my platform, my soapbox to stand on and ramble about Ayn (ie) Rand (om) musings that pop into my little Libertarian head.

Given that I now have the opportunity to speak more clearly, I should warn you that I am an avid fan of film. Ive seen all of the most contentious films including, Cannibal Holocaust (a Serbian film), The Interview, Romper Stomper and the worst of the lot 2016s Ghostbusters.

Regardless, it came to be quite a shock when I was inundated with warnings upon going to see Ghost in the Shell that there would be intense white-washing. Completely unaware of the Frankfurt schools new subversive slang, I did my fair share of googling and discovered that white-washing referred to the process of films altering the original content of their source material in order to racially undermine certain demographics. I did a double take, as I found myself hit with a visual montage of Nick Fury, the cast of Ghostbusters, Hermione and the Human Torch. Putting aside the fact that different roles are often recast and re cut all the time, with different races, genders, and persuasions attached to each adaptation how did these choices impact the film?

Ghost in the Shell is conceptually about individualism and how we can retain our own unique identity, body, and sense of self in a corrupt collectivist world. This is of course done symbolically throughout the film, as cyberpunk scenery and exaggerated corporate caricatures are drawn up.

The film pieces together a recreation of the anime in every facet of the world. Scarlett Johanssons role as Major has pristine pale skin which is juxtaposed to the neon lights of a booming cyber-city. Now, whilst this is accurate, casting a character from a Japanese source as white garnered a lot of controversy.

Among the controversy dished out is uproar towards the live-action Death Note film, which casts one of the leading roles as a white male, as opposed to the character originally being Japanese. The same voices which make up the lynch mob of modern cinema were noticeably silent about the quiet, pale and English character of L being played by California rapper Keith Stanfield. Nor did they kick up a fuss about the entirely Asian casting of the past four live-action Japanese films.

The worst part about this, is that those trying to stand up for the success of Asian communities are completely oblivious to the fact that poor reception of the film wont do wonders for Shanghai Film Group Corporation or Huahua Media which both contributed to the making of the film. A brief waltz through the Tumblr tag will show you the absolute schadenfreude of social justice activists at the film which was initially projected to lose sixty million at the box office.

I think we all wait with baited breath to see how Christopher Obi, Yuta Kazama, Tawanda Manyimo, Rila Fukushima, Pete Teo, Yutaka Izumihara, Kaori Yamamoto, Takeshi Kitano, Ng Chin Han and Kaori Momoi handle having their careers tarnished through a film boycott based on diversity.

You may be wondering how this has anything to do with Libertarianism, but it paints a grim picture of the supply and demand relationship in film quality. If people swallow up anything that meets a quota, rather than something based on quality, then the market will provide stupid and inane drivel to meet that desire.

I find it ironic that a film which is so intent on promoting themes of individualism was hijacked by a cavalcade of racial collectivists. If you want to see something which highlights government collusion, capitalist successes, the reckless nature of war and the interesting relationship between man and machine, then I urge you to see this film.

It is ideal that people vote with their money. This may be a vegan buying cruelty free products or someone buying what they perceive to be the best version of an item, as it helps to establish enterprises which cater to peoples needs. These examples display how a methodological libertarian practice has been hijacked for identity politics.

Perhaps the left has swerved away from culture, or perhaps I doth protest too much.

You can follow me on Facebook here for more Anarcho-Capitalist ravings:

This post was written by David McManus.

The views expressed here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect our views and opinions.

David McManus has an extensive background in youth politics and of advocacy with regards to the libertarian and anarcho-capitalist movements. David draws his values from the works of Stirner, Hoppe and Rothbard. He is currently a student in Australia with a passion for writing, which carries into a healthy zest for liberty-based activism. Despite an aspiring career in politics, he considers himself a writer at heart with a steady niche for freelance work.

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Doth Protest Too Much: Identity Politics - Being Libertarian

Washington Times

Libertarian Party seeks official press secretary in bid to woo news media Washington Times Boosted by considerable third-party success and a higher profile during the 2016 presidential election, the Libertarian Party has made a command decision to hire a full-time, experienced press secretary. This new staffer will be responsible for ... and more »

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Libertarian Party seeks official press secretary in bid to woo news media - Washington Times

Libertarian congressional candidate Mark Wicks and a few supporters had been standing around a Whitefish parking lot for more than half an hour before the first contestant rolled up. Wicks, a rancher and mailman from Inverness, was hosting an "ugly truck" competition outside the Firebrand Hotel in an attempt to capitalize on the rare bit of attention the political newcomer had mustered. During the only televised debate between special election candidates, on April 29, Wicks had delivered a zinger comparing his opponents to vehiclesGianforte a "country club" sedan, Quist a half-ton pickup with nice speakers but little torquewhile branding himself the "work truck." In Whitefish, he had "Send the Work Truck" T-shirts for sale and a campaign stunt that managed to draw as many reporters (three) as actual trucks.

That was enough to attract Don Anderson, a Libertarian who lives down the street, and his 150-pound Newfie, Shadow. Anderson didn't know much about Wicks, but said that the "basic statements" he'd heard, like eliminating the U.S. Department of Education, are "so consistent with the Libertarian philosophy."

State Libertarian party stalwarts are less sure about Wicks. Behind the scenes, his unconventional campaign and sometimes confusing platform is roiling Montana's only recognized third party, exacerbating a power struggle that's emerged in the absence of former standard-bearer Mike Fellows, who died while campaigning last September. The wheels fell off May 8, when party chair Ron Vandevender resigned during the homestretch of the party's first major race since Fellows' death.

"I'm not real fond of his ideas," Vandevender says of Wicks. "I don't think he's hard libertarian. I think he's more in line with this, 'I got to do what I got to do to get a vote.'"

Under Fellows, the Libertarian party and its agenda of personal freedom and limited government became a consistent, if minor, factor in state politics. Fellows ran for office every cycle for 20 years, including five bids for the U.S. House. Wicks is new to libertarian politics, but he possesses many of the personality quirks that typically signify a true believer. He named his youngest daughter Liberty. In 2012, he self-published a post-apocalyptic novel about a Montana ranching family titled Wrath of the Dodo. (A prefatory author's note warns that "a lot of the government policies and standard operating practices in this country need to change before we find ourselves living in a third world country.")

Protests in the wake of Donald Trump's election as president convinced Wicks the country needs "calmer heads," like his, to help it get back on track. He describes his philosophy as "libertarian mixed with common sense." He credits his rural lifestyle with allowing that philosophy to take form.

"If you're farming, you're going around in circles, so it gives you a lot of time to think," he says.

The resulting platform can be difficult for some of his harder-line libertarian peers to parse. Wicks supports federal subsidies for wind energy, and he also supports drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. He touts faith-based private health cooperatives, while maintaining that the federal government should regulate prescription drug prices. He's expressed support for intervention in Syria and for building a border wall.

"Honestly, and a lot of libertarians feel the same way ... Mark doesn't represent all the libertarian values," says party member Joe Paschal, of Townsend. "He's sort of a Republican, alt-right kind of guy."

Wicks earned the nomination in March at the party's first-ever state convention, beating Paschal in the last round of voting. As a way to begin rebuilding the party without Fellows, Vandevender says, he tried to make the convention inclusive by allowing county committees to seat delegates, even if they hadn't filed the requisite elections paperwork. Doing so, he says now, may have been a mistake. Wicks won on a 9-7 vote. Wicks' son was one of the delegates, party communications director Michael Fucci confirms.

Wicks has campaigned on his own, without a manager, between mail delivery routes and while traveling for his daughter's sports tournaments. His campaign has raised $2,030all in individual contributionsas of May 5, Federal Election Commission records show. Wicks hasn't had the benefit of a party mailing list, which he says is one of the items tied up in legal issues surrounding Fellows' deathor of state party money, of which Vandevender says there is none. In their stead, Wicks is trying to harness social media to generate momentum from his public debut on the debate stage in late April.

Among his supporters is former Bozeman mayor Jeff Krauss, who was mingling in the Whitefish parking lot after speaking at the Flathead County Libertarian Party's "Liberty Think Bash" the night before. As he told the Indy of his support for Wicks, a local party official asked if the campaign had publicized the endorsement. It hasn't, but an endorsement from Vandevender is spotlighted on Wicks' campaign site. It may need some revision.

"I'm looking at my ballot on the table," Vandevender says. "I'm going to do a write-in, or I'm going to burn it."

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How Mark Wicks wrapped Montana's Libertarians around the axle - Missoula Independent

HELENA This story is the first of a three-part series, profiling the candidates in the May 25 special election for Montanas sole U.S. House seat.

Hi-Line farmer and rancher Mark Wicks, whos never run for political office until now, vaulted into Montanas political consciousness two weeks ago with one of the more memorable closing statements at a candidates debate.

Wicks, vying for Montanas U.S. House seat in a May 25 special election, called his Republican rival Greg Gianforte the luxury car in the race that will end up parked at the country club, and Democratic contender Rob Quist an older, smaller pickup truck that doesnt run too well any more.

And where did Wicks place himself, in the parking lot of political vehicles?

Im the work truck, he said. Im the guy, when youre pulled over on the side of the road, and youre broke down, you want to see that big pickup pull up behind you that has the tow ropes, the chains, the tools everything to get the job done.

Wicks, the Libertarian candidate in the three-way race, is pitching himself as the person that Montana voters can trust to be a pragmatic, independent voice in Congress, for less government but not at the expense of Montana.

When I go back to Washington, nobody but the voters of Montana will be pulling my strings, he said during that same debate in Great Falls on April 29. I will not have the political hierarchy telling me how to vote, or when to vote, and they cant threaten me to pull my campaign funds away. So I can do whats right for Montana.

The 47-year-old Wicks and his family run cattle and hay at an operation north of Inverness, near the U.S.-Canadian border. He grew up on the Hi-Line, about 40 miles west of Havre, delivers mail, and sells fruit in eastern Montana during the summer.

His fellow Libertarians chose Wicks at a delegate convention March 11 in Helena and hes been running a steady but low-key campaign, communicating with voters via Facebook the medium I can afford, he says and traveling the state to visit with TV stations and newspapers and attend various public events.

Wicks says hes garnered way more attention since his appearance with Gianforte and Quist at the debate televised statewide on the Montana Television Networks CBS affiliates.

Still, as a low-budget, third-party candidate, Wicks struggles to compete with the more than $12 million thats been spent so far on the other two major-party candidates.

Wicks says hes trying to appeal to disaffected Republicans and Democrats to consider him as an alternative to the usual politicking.

I feel like the voters are in an abusive relationship, he said on MTNs Face the State last Sunday. They get promised one thing during the campaign, and as soon as (politicians) get back to Washington, were cheated on. This is a chance for Montanans to get out of an abusive relationship.

The Libertarian Party is known for its free-market views and desire for minimal government.

Wicks subscribes to some of these traditional Libertarian views. For example, he believes marijuana should be legalized and taxed, says the U.S. military budget could definitely use some trimming overseas, and says hes probably the biggest supporter of the 2nd Amendment ever running for this office.

He also says legalizing the growing of hemp can be a huge boost for Montanas rural, agricultural economy.

But on many other topics, Wicks is on board with a democratic government using its power to help improve the lives of Montanans and other U.S. citizens.

He says he will never vote to take money out of Social Security or Medicare, and that he opposes privatizing Social Security.

For military veterans, Wicks says they should be granted Medicare health coverage if they cant go to a Veterans Administration hospital or medical center, so they dont have to wait for care.

On prescription drugs, Wicks says U.S. pharmaceutical companies should be required to sell drugs for the same price in the United States, as theyre offering in cheaper overseas markets.

He also would like to simplify U.S. income taxes and reduce corporate tax rates, but says if Americans want government services, they must expect to pay adequate taxes.

Wicks insists that a vote for him is not a wasted vote, because hes the only candidate not influenced by special interests.

He notes that almost 100,000 people voted for Republican Attorney General Tim Fox last November did not vote for Republican Gianforte for governor.

If you come out and vote for me in this election, I win this, and your vote is not lost, he said.

Tomorrow: Democrat Rob Quist.

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Libertarian Mark Wicks: The work truck candidate for U.S. House ... - KTVH