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Wisconsins rich history of multi-party politics goes back to the 1849 gubernatorial contest between Democrat Nelson Dewey, Whig Alexander Collins and abolitionist Warren Chase.

In those days, the Democrats and the Whigs were the major parties. But Chase, a member of the socialist Ceresco community who had been a delegate to the 1847 Constitutional Convention and won election to the first state Senate in 1848, made a credible showing for the Free Soil Party, which had been formed a year earlier, and which would eventually give way to the Republican Party.

Since the Republicans got started in Ripon in 1854, the competition has generally been between the Grand Old Party and the Democrats. But they've rarely been the only parties on the ballot. The Progressive Party, which briefly merged left-wing Republicans and Socialist Party activists into the most viable third party in the state's history, actually won three gubernatorial elections and two U.S. Senate races in the 1930s and 1940s. The Socialist Party never won a statewide race, but it was the second largest party in the state Legislature during the 1920s (displacing the Democrats) and sent Victor Berger to the U.S. House as the representative from Milwaukee through much of that decade.

For the past 50 years, the Libertarian Party of Wisconsin presented itself as an alternative to the Democrats and the Republicans. One of the oldest affiliates of the national Libertarian Party, the state party is holding its convention in Milwaukee this weekend, and its members had a half-century of history to celebrate. That history merits attention, even from those of us who may differ with the Libertarians on particular issues. You dont have to agree with the partys small government agenda to recognize that its healthy to have a diversity of opinions on the debate stage, and a diversity of parties on the ballot.

While the Libertarians have not won statewide elections in Wisconsin, they have elected a number of members to county and municipal posts over the years. And, at several turns, they have influenced the politics of the state.

In 2016, for instance, Libertarian presidential nominee Gary Johnson won more than 100,000 votes, for 3.58% of the total far more than the margin that separated Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton. That year, exit polls suggested that the Libertarians attracted votes from substantial numbers of Republicans and Democrats who were unsatisfied with the nominees of their own parties just as Green Party nominee Ralph Nader did when he won almost 100,000 votes in 2000. In 2020, Libertarian presidential candidate Jo Jorgensen got 38,491 votes almost double Democrat Joe Biden's winning margin in Wisconsin.

The most historic Wisconsin Libertarian finish came in 2002, when Tomah Mayor Ed Thompson, the brother of former Gov. Tommy Thompson, was the partys gubernatorial nominee. Running on a ticket with Democratic state Rep. Marty Reynolds, Thompson advocated for decriminalization of marijuana, lowering the drinking age to 18 and reducing prison populations by releasing nonviolent offenders.

Thompson's freewheeling campaign struck a chord, especially with young voters. He won 185,455 votes statewide and carried Monroe and Juneau counties. Thompson's double-digit finish won the Libertarians a place on the old Wisconsin State Elections Board, where its representative advocated for smart election reforms

The Libertarians have remained active in recent years as have the Greens and their candidates have won a fair number of votes in state and local elections. In so doing, they have lived up to their promise to offer voters an alternative to the broken two party system in America.

John Nichols is associate editor of The Capital Times.jnichols@captimes.comand @NicholsUprising.

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Opinion | Libertarians have produced 50 years of alternatives for Wisconsin - The Capital Times

A few days ago, I arrived in Los Angeles for a three-month sabbatical from Harvard. Im renting an apartment in a gorgeous downtown building complete with rooftop pool, hot tub, gym and yoga studio. But across the street is Pershing Plaza, where every night dozens of homeless people sleep rough. In the mornings, my dog is perplexed by the sight of humans, like dogs, peeing on the streets. If she could speak, I imagine her saying: LA is a rich city, California is a rich state and America is a rich country. Cant you humans fix this?

Meanwhile, I read in the Harvard Gazette about the new $300 million gift by hedge fund manager Kenneth Griffin to the universitys faculty of arts and sciences, which will see its graduate school renamed in his honour. Tax-deductible it may be, but its still a generous gift, especially because graduate programmes are often orphans in the philanthropic portfolio. I may even personally benefit if Griffin funds end up supporting graduate students in my department.

The Griffin gift is also laudable for being unrestricted. This distinguishes it from most other philanthropic gifts, whose attached strings tend to support programmes aligned with the wealthy donors values and belief system.

In our new book, The Big Myth, Erik Conway and I show how the post-war rise to power and influence of the Chicago School of Economics was in part the product of libertarian philanthropists who funded specific research programmes, hand-picked likeminded researchers, and funded them generously. The likes of George Stigler and Milton Friedman were part of an explicit Free Market Project to create a blueprint for an effective competitive system of free enterprise (but without competition from colleagues who held opposing views.)

One element was called the Antitrust Project, although in reality it was the opposite. Both classical and neoclassical economics saw competition as central to the workings of markets, but members of the Antitrust Project constructed an economic analogy to Darwins theory of natural selection to argue that monopolies were the natural outcome of competition in which the fittest company survived. Hence, government attempts to break up monopolies were undoing the markets good work.

The projects most famous product was Robert Bork, Richard Nixons failed nominee for the Supreme Court. Bork insisted that what mattered was not competition but price. So long as prices were low, it didnt matter how they were achieved. This became known as the Consumer Welfare Standard. The term is misleading since prices are not the only thing that matters to consumers, but Bork was a brilliant jurist and his arguments fuelled the case not only for deregulating monopolies, such as airlines and telecommunications, in the 1970s and 80s, but for undermining antitrust enforcement for more than 40 years.

This contributed to the rise of politically, socially and environmentally damaging monopolies in telecommunications, agriculture, retailing and more. And, in a noxious feedback loop, the concentration of wealth, enabled the owners of these monopolies to further influence academia. Law professor Herbert Hovenkamp has recently concluded that what kept the Chicago School alive was less the strength of its arguments and more the financial support of firms and others who stood to profit from less intervention.

This is one example among many. Historian Nancy MacLean has documented how the Koch brothers have donated huge sums intended to influence academic programs in a libertarian direction. This includes nearly $50 million given since 2005 to the George Mason University Foundation, a big slice of which has supported the universitys market-fundamentalist Mercatus Center, infamous among climate scientists for its many years spent denying climate science.

Researchers at Brown University have shown how many universities Brown included have accepted fossil fuel money that may be skewing climate research. At Harvard, for many years convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein funded programmes focused on the genetic origins of human behaviour with a creepy eugenic bent. More recently, Bill Gates has funded a climate programmededicated to advancing geo-engineering.

Some people will agree with the politics and ideologies behind these donations; that is their right. The problem is that philanthropic donations distort the marketplace of ideas, because they tilt the agenda of universities towards views and solutions favoured by the wealthy at the expense of open inquiry and a more capacious research agenda that focuses not just on technical and commercial approaches to market failures but also social and political ones.

After all, where is the libertarian billionaire prepared to fund a serious effort to understand and end homelessness? Griffin, a Republican mega-donor, is certainly not that billionaire. Nor is he doing anything for equality in US higher education; as our research also underlined, he is typical of philanthropists in favouring private universities, many of which, like Harvard, are already super-rich (McKenzie Scotts recent $2.7 billion gift to institutions serving under-represented students was as notable as it was rare).

But if it makes good use of Griffins unrestricted donation, Harvards faculty of arts and sciences may at least be able to make some progress towards understanding and addressing the causes of homelessness and ending the obscenity of people being forced to live like dogs.

Naomi Oreskes is the Henry Charles Lea professor of the history of science at Harvard University and a visiting fellow at the Berggruen Institute in Los Angeles. Her new book, with Erik M. Conway, is The Big Myth: How American Business Taught Us to Loathe Government and Love the Free Market, published by Bloomsbury Press.

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Big university donors distort research agendas - Times Higher Education

By Insider Staff - Apr 17, 2023 |

If It Sounds Like a Quack

On April 20, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling (A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear) visits Gibsons Bookstore, on 45 S Main St, in Concord to present a bizarre, rollicking trip through the world of fringe medicine, filled with leeches, baking soda IVs, and, according to at least one person, zombies, with his new book If It Sounds Like a Quack: A Journey to the Fringes of American Medicine! Its no secret that American health care has become too costly and politicized to help everyone. So where do you turn if you cant afford doctors, or dont trust them? In this book, Hongoltz-Hetling examines the growing universe of non-traditional treatments.

CYPN Earth Day Hike

Join Concord Young Professionals Network (CYPN) and Five Rivers Conservation Trust for an Earth Day hike and trail clean up, on April 22, from 1 to 3 p.m. This is a great opportunity to build professional connections and community friendships while doing our part for Earth Day. Enjoy the company of fellow YPs for an easy and educational walk to explore the Armstrong Forest Preserve in Concord. Our goal is to collect debris, trash and recycling as we enjoy Earth Day together!

Suggested Items To Bring: Trash bag, gloves, hand sanitizer, bug spray, snacks, waters and any required medication for an outdoor activity.

Location: The Armstrong Forest Preserve is located on Stickney Hill Rd in Concord directly across from the Exit 3 ramp from I-89 North. This ramp is only accessible to northbound traffic.

History of farming as told by barns

Barns can tell us a great deal about the history of agriculture in New Hampshire. In the colonial period, New Hampshire was a rural, agrarian state and small subsistence farms dotted the landscape. An important part of these farmsteads was the barn, which housed animals and stored crops. Early barns used traditional building methods and followed the English barn style, with a low pitched roof and doors under the eaves. As time went on, the farms expanded to accommodate changes in agriculture.

This presentation will follow the progression of barn styles that evolved to handle the increased productivity required to meet the needs of a growing population and respond to changes in society caused by the railroad and the Industrial Revolution. Join John C. Porter, author of Preserving Old Barns: Preventing the Loss of a Valuable Resource, on April 20, at 7 p.m. at the Pembroke Town Library, 313 Pembroke St., as he will demonstrate how these majestic barn structures represent Yankee ingenuity, hard work, and skilled craftsmanship, as well as providing a link to our past that adds to the states scenic beauty. This event is hosted by the Pembroke Historical Society, and for more information, contact Sarah Hyland, at 603-566-1031.

Brewing in New Hampshire

Glenn Knoblock explores the fascinating history of New Hampshires beer and ale brewing industry from Colonial days, when it was home- and tavern-based, to todays modern breweries and brew pubs. Unusual and rare photos and advertisements document this changing industry and the states earliest brewers, including the renowned Frank Jones. A number of lesser-known brewers and breweries that operated in the state are also discussed, including the only brewery owned and operated by a woman before the modern era. Illustrations present evidence of societys changing attitudes towards beer and alcohol consumption over the years. Whether youre a beer connoisseur or a tea-totaler, this lecture will be enjoyed by adults of all ages. The event will be held at the Epsom Public Library, 1606 Dover Rd., on April 24, at 6:30p.m. For more information, contact the Epsom Public Library at 603-763-9920.

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Bulletin board for the week of April 20, 2023 - The Concord Insider

With the same logic with which the two coalitions running the country and its provinces for the last 20 years disown their misrule, while living immersed in their eternal infighting instead of maturing towards state policies of sustainable development and economic distribution, neither do they feel responsible for having fed the Javier Milei phenomenon.

Taking him as a Godzilla of politics (to equate him with the Japanese comic monster destroying everything in his path), they have bet on his presidential candidacy proving to be a sham that as the months go by, he will be taken to be a fictional character, becoming merely media popcorn entertainment.

Similar global phenomena have been similarly underestimated, such as the cases of Donald Trump and Jair Bolsonaro or the rise of far-right leaders in Italy, France, Spain and Chile, to give some well-known examples. That will not happen here, Argentine leaders say with a certain bravado, having seemingly forgotten the begone with them all attitude of 2001 and the historic electoral atomisation of 2003 with barely 10 percentage points separating five leading presidential candidates (Carlos Menem, Nstor Kirchner, Ricardo Lpez Murphy, Elisa Carri and Adolfo Rodrguez Sa).

To such amnesia should be added rashness. Some sectors of the ruling Frente de Todos coalition even cheer Milei on, according to the strategic logic that the libertarian basically expresses an opposition vote, thus bleeding into Juntos por el Cambios support base and permitting the government to be more competitive.

That perhaps explains why on various occasions the government has brought him to the fore as a wake-up call. The most recent and it will not be the last time was when President Alberto Fernndez somehow compared him to Adolf Hitler on Radio Perfil.

This self-seeking exercise is not just theoretical and dialectical. In different parts of the country (Chubut, Salta, La Rioja and others) and especially Buenos Aires Province (where at least 40,000 scrutineers will be required), the construction of Milei feeds off many Peronist leaders and contributions of obscure origins, enmeshed with the caste against whom he proclaims combat so much.

Juntos por el Cambio has taken note of this process after a fashion. To seduce Milei supporters, they harvest liberal thinking, advancing towards an agreement with Jos Luis Espert in Buenos Aires Province, similar to that already rehearsed in Buenos Aires City with Lpez Murphy in the 2021 midterms. At the same time, certain leaders close to Macri, especially Patricia Bullrich, are accentuating their winks in public (while multiplying them behind the scenes) towards the libertarian leader.

Amber lights (an appropriate enough colour) have started flashing in PRO over such tactics. The oppositions qualitative analysis of public opinion is sounding the alert that if Bullrich is defeated by Rodrguez Larreta in the PASO primaries, there is a risk of the defeated candidates voters flocking to Milei. Even frustrated leaders could mutate, as national deputy Omar De Marchi is threatening to do in Mendoza.

The alarms over the opinion polls have also sounded in the hapless electoral labs of the government when infighting gives them a breathing-space. Its not just about the growth in the voting intentions for the leader of La Libertad Avanza the move of Peronist support is being consolidated, especially in the most neglected areas of Greater Buenos Aires while projections are beginning to appear placing him in the run-off instead of Frente de Todos.

In the responses of potential voters, which are often difficult to obtain, concepts of liberty or the state as the enemy, themes highlighted by Milei early on in his candidacy, do not arise. What does appear, and is growing all the time, is social fatigue and the idea of punishing much of the political class. The recent act of aggression against Buenos Aires Province Security Minister Sergio Berni after the murder of a bus-driver has been interpreted within this framework by some circles of power, over and above the intricate conspiracy theories which Kirchnerism and its satellites put forward.

Milei expresses a civic Im fed up with unpredictable consequences. It would suit politics to take him seriously and stop playing with fire.

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Still mucking around with Milei - Buenos Aires Times

Libertarian economist and presidential hopeful Javier Milei, leader of coalition La Libertad Avanza, said on the radio this morning that he would be willing to compete in a primary election for the presidential nomination against former Security Minister Patricia Bullrich within a potential new coalition this year.

Its too late [to run as Bullrichs vice president] but its not so late to create a new space and compete against each other, he told Radio Rivadavia this morning. Theres still time.

Milei has been planning to run as the only candidate for his coalition, and recent polling suggests he could make it to a second round in the presidential elections.

The economist got into an online fight last night against Elisa Carri, a founder of the main opposition coalition Juntos por el Cambio (JxC) and leader of its member party, Civic Coalition, who said on TV that ex-president Mauricio Macri is not seeking to preserve the unity of the coalition but rather focusing on creating alliances with Milei.

He retweeted her message and said: traitors, these are the caste politicians in Argentina. Youve been hanging from Macri for twenty years to steal positions, and now you spit at him. Nothing good can come out from them.

Milei, who has positioned himself as an outsider, refers to career politicians as the caste (la casta). He is famous for raffling off his government salary because he sees receiving cash from the state as illegitimate, and has claimed that if he were to become president, hed burn down the Central Bank.

I find traitors irritating, he said on Radio Rivadavia. Later, he added: I wouldnt run with JxC, but Ive said before I would have no problem in meeting them in a new structure.

He said that, if he were to compete against other PRO candidates within a new coalition, he would accompany whoever won the presidential election if he didnt win the nomination. However, he said he was not willing to run as vice president to Patricia Bullrich, the candidate furthest to the right who is running for JxCs presidential nomination so far.

A deputy since 2021, Milei advocates for minimal State and the elimination of taxes and currency policies. His party opposes social movements and demands like feminism, climate activism, indigenous rights, and social welfare programs for the most vulnerable.

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Milei says he would join forces with Bullrich and Macri - Buenos Aires Herald