Complete Liberty Podcast promotes total respect for self-ownership, property rights, and personal choice—amidst the authoritarian/obedience-oriented political and psychological memes in American culture (and elsewhere). Basically, governments and all they entail are the problem, not the solution. Voluntarism (or market anarchism, or anarcho-capitalism) and customary law principles, in accordance with reason and dignity, spell the solution.

The easiest way to podcatch is to load all the past episodes into iTunes:
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=254220370

Alternatively, you can use the libsy rss feed for all past episodes:
http://completeliberty.libsyn.com/rss

However, the comments on the Libsyn page have been deactivated, so it's best to use the Complete Liberty Podcast category feed here if you want to throw in your two cents :)
feed://completeliberty.com/xml/magazine/category/91697.xml

Also, the first ten episodes of Complete Liberty Podcast are actually the audiobook (shows 11 and higher are the podcast episodes). So, if you'd like to read the book first and/or you're new to the concepts of a voluntary society, here's the page to begin listening: http://completeliberty.com/audiobook.html

(The pdf and html files can be found in the "CL Book" links in the site's menu above.)

Feb 16th

Liberation

By frances walker
It was my dad who gave me the idea to stop giving a damn about who sits where and who should be ousted and why we can never get enough of Iraq. I remember asking him when I was twelve why he isn't voting like mother or everyone else and he told me, "because I don't want to be fooled any longer." I wasn't sure what it meant at the time, but when I turned into the age where I get to vote, I remembered the conversation.

I voted three times since my first and later got involved in a student organization of "freethinkers," which led me to doubt everything in the world, that there's no absolute truth, etcetera. And being a Sociology student in college, I often wrote political essays and engaged in debates in school, which further developed my cynical disposition on many many things. I thought of myself as liberated, but even that, I doubted because despite the way I think and act, I can never free myself from my other responsibilities. I'm talking about doing my part as a citizen despite the absence of a political stand.
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Feb 8th

Episode 157 - The shrugging of atlas, and the welfare state

By Wes Bertrand

Corporations are manifestations of statism
http://completeliberty.com/iv__immorality_of_politics.html

Ayn Rand explicated the non-aggression principle quite clearly
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/physical_force.html

http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Vulgar_libertarianism

'Atlas Shrugged Part 2' Timed to Hit Screens Just Before Presidential Election
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/atlas-shrugged-part-2-prduction-april-286633

Do we really need to surrender to "authority" in order to survive?...
http://www.mygovcost.org/2012/01/19/nearly-half-of-americans-receive-government-funding/

bumper music "Sentinel" by VNV Nation
http://www.vnvnation.com/

Direct download: Episode_157_-_The_shrugging_of_atlas_and_the_welfare_state.mp3

2 Comments
Jan 22nd

Episode 156 - Liberty getaway cruise 2011, voting debate

By Wes Bertrand

Stefan Molyneux's site:
http://freedomainradio.com

Mark Edge's site:
http://freetalklive.com

An article by Jim Davies about Ron Paul's agenda (http://ronpaul2012.com)
http://strike-the-root.com/ron-reviewed
about Ron Paul's Presidential Campaign by Jim Davies
http://www.theanarchistalternative.info/zgb/rondex.htm
Raise the Drawbridge! by Jim Davies
http://www.theanarchistalternative.info/zgb/11A141.htm
Ron's War on Drugs by Jim Davies
http://www.theanarchistalternative.info/zgb/11A135.htm

New Hampshire activism options (both inside and outside the coercive system)
http://freestateproject.org
http://freekeene.com

Further reading on the USC...
No Treason No. VI. The Constitution of No Authority
http://praxeology.net/LS-NT-6.htm

bumper music "Suffrage" by Matthias Adler
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Matthias-Adler/297658406940392?sk=info

to comment, please go to http://completeliberty.com/magazine/category/91697

Direct download: Episode_156_-_Liberty_getaway_cruise_2011_voting_debate.mp3
2 Comments
Dec 30th

Episode 155 - Liberty getaway cruise 2011, nonviolent communication principles

By Wes Bertrand

http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/objectivism.html
and its five branches:
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/metaphysics.html
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/epistemology.html
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/morality.html
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/politics.html
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/esthetics.html

Passing moral judgment (on oneself and others) tends to diminish the ability of getting one's needs met, because it represents an unexpressed (or poorly expressed) need

Were there any "noble savages"? Definitely no noble States
Science Saturday: War of the Doves (Robert Wright & John Horgan)
http://bloggingheads.tv/diavlogs/31183
Science Saturday: War and Peace (John Horgan & Steven Pinker)
http://bloggingheads.tv/diavlogs/39138
Science Saturday: The Anthropology of War (John Horgan & Brian Ferguson)
http://bloggingheads.tv/diavlogs/14196

http://www.cnvc.org/Training/feelings-inventory
http://www.cnvc.org/Training/needs-inventory
http://en.nvcwiki.com/index.php/Restorative_justice

Triggering fear, guilt, and shame in others tends to engender diminished good will and empathy; nonviolent communication tends to engender increased good will and empathy

To live in a world in which people only do those things that they truly want to do will entail a psychological (and political) paradigm shift

bumper music "Something Very Pure" by Mystical Sun
http://www.mysticalsun.com/

Direct download: Episode_155_-_Liberty_getaway_cruise_2011_nonviolent_communication_principles.mp3
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Dec 13th

Christians and Libertarianism

By Chad Ressler
As a believer, I was basically "reared" in a very conservative denomination where pretty much everything you did that resulted in any kind of pleasure was sin.  It was an unreflective Church that did not really think through many issues.  I went to seminary and began learning.  I used my critical thinking faculties and developed them as well as taking some undergrad philosophy classes.  All the Christians I know subscribe to the conservative mantra.  They want to restrict gays, drug use, drinking, abortion (sorry, I agree with that one), etc, and they normally listen to the voices of organizations like Focus on the Family.  They would love to see the conservative "daddy state" where everyone's behavior is controlled.  They are often vigourously involved in politics and love using the power of the state to acheive their ends.  I don't think its because they hate freedom, rather I think it is that they have been brainwashed for too long and don't understand what liberty and self-ownership are.
The problem is that Christianity really isn't about forcing your morality onto other people, though many Christians engage in this behavior (e.g. Moral Majority, Focus on the Family, etc.).  I've also heard Christianity mischaracterized and ridiculed by different libertarians which I think is wrong.  Libertarian atheists often treat Christianity and Christian theology way different than they would treat opposing political philosophies.  They tear down the straw man version of Christianity rather than what orthodox theologians teach, contemporary theologians like Berkhof, Grudem, James White, Greg Bahnsen, John Frame, Cornelius Van Til, etc.  As believers, we are not to FORCE anyone to believe, rather we simply share the Gospel.  Sharing the Christian Gospel is no different than advocating for libertarianism if you think about it. I believe Christians using the power of the state to enforce morality are wrong.  The Scriptures do not call us to do that.  What we are called to do is spelled out in Matthew 28:18-20 and it has nothing to do with using state power to enforce a morality.
As a Christian libertarian, I stand for a person's right to be gay and get married or serve openly in the army.  I stand for people being able to consume whatever drug they choose, and for people being able to use their own property how they choose.  Do I have a moral disagreement with certain things...yes...but then I am called to share the Gospel and that person is free to accept or reject it.  I'm not to judge them.  I am not called to utilize aggression or the state to modify behavior.  More Christians need to be educated on what libertarians believe and what the goals of truly free society really are. More libertarian atheists need to rethink some of their criticisms as well, stop attacking ignorant fundamentalists (I disagree with them too!) and using that as a model of Christianity.  I think that a truly free society is something that both Christians and atheists can work towards together because religion has no place in a discussion of politics.
10 Comments
Dec 5th

Episode 154 - Unconditional parenting, part fifteen

By Wes Bertrand

In this episode I cover the Appendix - Parenting Styles: The Relevance of Culture, Class, and Race in the book Unconditional Parenting: Moving From Rewards And Punishments To Love And Reason by Alfie Kohn
http://www.unconditionalparenting.com/up/

Love is both a feeling and a need
Collectivistic cultures tend to minimize or even disfavor self-interest and self-actualization, which leads to repressed feelings, e.g., of resentment and depression

When parents spank children, they inflict pain and induce fear in them, i.e., fear of parental "authority," which sends a really confused and contradictory message to them about their own individuality and choice--and it perversely mixes notions of love with violence. Basically, violating the rights of children doesn't help them flourish.

Lenient parenting methods are just as lopsided as punitive parenting methods. They don't teach children respectful ways to express feelings and get needs met, while meeting the needs of others. It's important for parents to express their feelings in relation to their unmet needs, and be advocates for getting their needs met as much as children do.

Many thanks to Alfie Kohn for putting such a book of useful information about parenting into the world. May the memes of unconditional parenting spread far and wide, so that adults learn that there are life-enriching, win/win ways to get needs met in families, and children therefore grow up healthy and happy. :)

Youth Voices on Peacemaking and Conflict Resolution
http://www.goodradioshows.org/peaceTalksL84.htm

Marshall Rosenberg 6-09 When Authority Destroys Creativity from NVC Training Course
http://www.amazon.com/Nonviolent-Communication-Training-Course/dp/1591794439

bumper music "Joyful Wonder" by Ott
http://www.ottsonic.net/

Direct download: Episode_154_-_Unconditional_parenting_part_fifteen.mp3
0 Comments
Nov 12th

Episode 153 - Reflections on Libertopia 2011

By Wes Bertrand

http://libertopia.org

http://libertyontour.com

http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/stolen_concept,_fallacy_of.html

promoting intrinsic motivation: trust children, and they will learn...
http://summum-bonum.org/

no matter who you vote for, politics (government) always wins

http://www.meetup.com/LeewaySudburySchool/

http://completeliberty.com/viii__objective_law.html

Taking on the California DMV
http://www.youtube.com/hotforliberty#p/u/32/41ZY5LSDEZA

Parenting with Naomi Aldort - S.A.L.V.E. Formula
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFlPe14SuAY

Five Principles of Libertopia
1. All actions should be peaceful and voluntary
2. Honor the self
3. Rule yourself
4. Live and let live

5. Community of Spontaneous Order

by Larry Ludlow...
http://www.freedomsphoenix.com/Magazine/098621-2011-10-29-libertopia-2011-four-days-in-the-freest-place-on-earth.htm

bumper music "California" by Semisonic
http://www.semisonic.com/

Direct download: Episode_153_-_Reflections_on_Libertopia_2011.mp3

2 Comments
Oct 15th

Episode 152 - Unconditional parenting, part fourteen

By Wes Bertrand

In this episode I cover the second half of Chapter Ten: The Child's Perspective in the book Unconditional Parenting: Moving From Rewards And Punishments To Love And Reason by Alfie Kohn
http://www.unconditionalparenting.com/up/

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/empathy

An assortment of helpful nonviolent communication resources I've compiled (2MB download of PDFs)
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/7585370/NVCcompilation.zip

Our culture has a tough time with the idea of self-centeredness, similar to the notion of selfishness; Ayn Rand helped clarify:
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/selfishness.html
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/contradictions.html

You are your highest value, first and foremost, which enables you to see others as their own highest value--thus, neither sacrificing oneself to others, nor others to oneself
A world of selfless people is not one in which people are getting their needs met

A profound way to explore your inner-self, especially your child-self--The Art Of Self-Discovery
http://www.nathanielbranden.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_23&products_id=38

http://digg.com/news/technology/steve_jobs_narrates_never_aired_version_of_think_different_commercial

bumper music "A New World" by Antinomie
couldn't find link; closest site - http://www.myspace.com/nemystic

to comment, please go to http://completeliberty.com/magazine/category/91697

Direct download: Episode_152_-_Unconditional_parenting_part_fourteen.mp3
0 Comments
Sep 28th

Episode 151 - Unconditional parenting, part thirteen

By Wes Bertrand

Agora I/O - the online liberty unconference...
http://agora.io/laozi/schedule/
http://agora.io/laozi/archives/

Libertopia - an annual festival of peace, freedom, music, community and ideas that will change the World...a 3-day celebration of our individuality and diversity in sunny San Diego...
http://libertopia.org/

In this episode I cover the first half of Chapter Ten: The Child's Perspective in the book Unconditional Parenting: Moving From Rewards And Punishments To Love And Reason by Alfie Kohn
http://www.unconditionalparenting.com/up/

Happiness is our highest moral purpose, so it's vital to know what it objectively requires
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/happiness.html
Out-of-context happiness (e.g., ignoring the ills of statism) is just as disconnected from one's true self as the unhappiest depression

Punitive parenting and punitive governmental actions tragically go hand in hand

The commonly misunderstood ethical terms...
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/self-interest.html
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/altruism.html
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/trader_principle.html

At a bare minimum, parents need to convey to their kids the extreme importance and sanctity of their persons and property, i.e., the nature of respecting individual rights in society
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/individual_rights.html

In a free society, everyone can be productive; "competition" is merely people bringing various values to the marketplace

bumper music "Let There Be Light" by Astral Projection
http://www.myspace.com/astralprojectionavilior

Direct download: Episode_151_-_Unconditional_parenting_part_thirteen.mp3
0 Comments
Sep 11th

Episode 150 - Unconditional parenting, part twelve

By Wes Bertrand

In this episode I cover the second half of Chapter Nine: Choices For Children in the book Unconditional Parenting: Moving From Rewards And Punishments To Love And Reason by Alfie Kohn
http://www.unconditionalparenting.com/up/

Taking responsibility is greatly diminished in those who administer punishments, since they commonly blame the disobedient person who's being punished as "bringing it on themselves" or "choosing" to be punished

Whenever what we want comes across as a demand (rather than a request), we tend to pay a price psychologically and socially in terms of getting our needs met

As humans, we all have the same needs:
http://www.cnvc.org/Training/needs-inventory
And feelings are universal as well:
http://www.cnvc.org/Training/feelings-inventory

The all-too-commom process of parents telling children what to do and when to do it, such as eating and sleeping, greatly hinders the process of children learning to take responsibility for their own basic functions as growing human beings; and, it doesn't meet their needs for respect and autonomy (among other needs)

Check out the facets of whole-life unschooling...
http://www.unschooling.info/ ; http://www.unschooling.org/ ; http://www.holtgws.com/whatisunschoolin.html
Dayna Martin: What is Radical Unschooling?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiHyzS26N0Y

Ian Freeman's thorough overview of the NH CD liberty activism
http://freekeene.com/2011/09/03/ians-blog-from-jail-3/

bumper music "Sunrise" by trance[]control
http://www.trancecontrol.com/

Direct download: Episode_150_-_Unconditional_parenting_part_twelve.mp3
0 Comments