Christians and Libertarianism
By Chad ResslerThe 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.
Episode 139 - Unconditional parenting, part three
By Wes Bertrand
In this episode I cover Chapter Two: Giving And Withholding
Love in the book Unconditional Parenting: Moving From Rewards
And Punishments To Love And Reason by Alfie Kohn
http://www.unconditionalparenting.com/up/
Time out from positive reinforcement is a widespread form of
love withdrawal
Making children suffer in order to get different behavior from
them begets more of itself, and it definitely prepares them for
the coercive world of statism
The Condition Of Modern Psychology (explicating many of the
ills of behaviorism and lack of philosophical
understanding)
http://www.logicallearning.net/libconditionofps.html
My Years with Ayn Rand - A powerful myth-shattering memoir
about one of the twentieth century's most controversial
figures
http://www.nathanielbranden.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_25&products_id=29
Rewards are largely ineffective at improving the quality of
people's work and learning, and like punishments, they have
many harmful results
Intrinsic motivation, wanting to do something for its own sake,
is fundamentally different than extrinsic motivation, doing
something in order to get something else (reward) or avoid
something else (punishment); both punishments and rewards are
extrinsic motivators, which in turn sabotage intrinsic
motivation and beget extrinsically motivated people
Helpful and comprehensive psychotherapeutic workbook: The Art
Of Self-Discovery
http://www.nathanielbranden.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_23&products_id=38
Feel free to contact me for a counseling session at wes@happinesscounseling.com
http://happinesscounseling.com
bumper music "Justify My Love" by trance[]control
http://www.trancecontrol.com/
Episode 122 - Challenging the voting meme
By Wes Bertrand
In this show, I comment on a clip from http://freetalklive.com,
which involved the hosts discussing the nature of non-voting
with a caller
http://traffic.libsyn.com/ftl/FTL2010-09-27.mp3
(clip starts at 14:15)
STR Non-Voting Archive
http://www.strike-the-root.com/vote.html
What evidence is there that anyone wants the "services"
provided by those in government, since they are coercively
imposed?
Even if you're an advocate of http://agorism.info, you still can't
escape the statist economic matrix, a society in which most
people abide by laws, regulations, taxes, and a fiat currency
system, not to mention the "public school" system
Respect for individuals, in principle, can never be achieved
via the coercive collectivistic organization of government;
government violates individual rights by definition
"Public goods" arguments, being fallacious, are just excuses
for statism and tyranny
http://www.vforvoluntary.com/wiki/PublicGoods
A Theory of the Theory of Public Goods by Randall G.
Holcombe
http://mises.org/journals/rae/pdf/RAE10_1_1.pdf
Fallacies of the Public Goods Theory and the Production of
Security by Hans-Hermann Hoppe
http://mises.org/journals/jls/9_1/9_1_2.pdf
Pareto Optimality, External Benefits and Public Goods: A
Subjectivist Approach by Barry P. Brownstein
http://mises.org/journals/jls/4_1/4_1_6.pdf
Public Goods And Private Solutions In Maritime History by Larry
J. Sechrest
http://mises.org/journals/qjae/pdf/qjae7_2_1.pdf
Public Spending and Public Goods by Thomas DiLorenzo
http://mises.org/media/1444
(includes mp3 audio)
http://www.thefreemanonline.org/departments/book-review-private-means-public-ends-voluntarism-vs-coercion-edited-by-j-wilson-mixon-jr/
Competition and Political Entrepreneurship: Austrian Insights
into Public-Choice Theory by Thomas J. DiLorenzo
http://mises.org/journals/rae/pdf/RAE2_1_3.pdf
The political system won't conform to sound principles; you
will have to compromise sound principles to conform to the
political system
The Ethics Of Voting - Part 1 by George H. Smith
http://voluntaryist.com/articles/001a.php
Statist judges have no understanding of justice and objective
law; rather, they violate them on a daily basis; therefore,
being a "juror" for a statist judge does not accord with
justice and objective law
http://marcstevens.net
Root-striking questions...
http://www.meetup.com/Complete-Liberty/messages/boards/thread/8208221
There is no such thing as a "liberty-minded principled
candidate"; Ayn Rand grasped the essence of this, even though
she forwarded the ethical and political contradiction of
government
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/pragmatism.html
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/moral-practical_dichotomy.html
http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/theory-practice_dichotomy.html
THE ANATOMY OF SLAVESPEAK by Frederick Mann
http://www.buildfreedom.com/tl/tl07a.shtml
Adam and Pete (of http://libertyontour.com) striking serious
Libertarian roots on Declare Your Independence!
http://www.meetup.com/Complete-Liberty/messages/boards/thread/9803960
bumper music "Ballot Box" by Destroy Everything
http://destroyeverything.com/
Episode 137 - Unconditional parenting, part one
By Wes Bertrand
In this episode I cover the Introduction in the book
Unconditional Parenting by Alfie Kohn
http://www.unconditionalparenting.com/up/
The most extreme example of operant conditioning is the
domination system of government--individuals are told to obey and
are punished if they don't do what they're told
Any political philosophy not based on property rights is bound to
deny individual needs for autonomy, justice, choice, and
respect
The foundation of a free society is to be found in parents who
interact with children in life-enriching ways, who connect with
feelings and meet needs for respect and choice
Teaching kids to attribute the cause of their feelings to things
outside themselves hinders them (and later, as adults) from
taking responsibility for their feelings
http://logicallearning.net/ResponsibilityForFeelings.mp3
(NVC audiobook segment by Marshall Rosenberg)
Please join the revised http://completeliberty.com
Here's an instructive forum thread...
Home> Public Outreach> How do we educate? (an NVC
discussion)
http://completeliberty.com/forum/topic/7/page/1
Feel free to contact me for a counseling session at wes@happinesscounseling.com
http://happinesscounseling.com
2011 Liberty Getaway 5-day cruise to Bermuda (registration
deadline has been extended!)
http://www.btwcruises.com/rw/view/475
http://freedomcamp.wikispaces.com/
bumper music "Destination Skyline" by Aura - the source of
trance
http://auratrance.com/
Episode 115 - Do we ever really get out of anarchy
By Wes Bertrand
Study Guide Classic: Do We Ever Really Get Out of Anarchy?
http://blog.mises.org/4716/study-guide-classic-do-we-ever-really-get-out-of-anarchy/
Do we ever really get out of anarchy? by Alfred G. Cuzan
http://mises.org/journals/jls/3_2/3_2_3.pdf
Noticing political contradictions is not a strong suit for
believers in Government
Political anarchy and market anarchy are worlds apart in terms
of justice
A case of government punishing their own...in order to maintain
their PR http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_Cunningham
NoStateProject - June 19, 2010 - Co-host JT and Guest Wes
Bertrand
http://www.marcstevens.net/board/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=2076
It doesn't matter whether government is structured in a
"pluralistic" or "hierarchical" fashion, all governments by
definition violate the non-aggression principle
A coercive monopoly on the enforcement of justice (i.e.,
government) will always foster injustice
Those in government have no property rights jurisdiction to
enforce their "laws"
The use of retaliatory force must be no more than what is
necessary to deal with the rights-violation
Coercive monopolies will always deliver the lowest quality
"service" at the highest price
Revisiting "Do we ever really get out of anarchy?" http://mises.org/journals/jls/22_1/22_1_1.pdf
bumper music "Anarchy" by KMFDM http://www.kmfdm.net/
Episode 136 - Nonviolent communication reexamined
By Wes Bertrand
Guest Oliver Heuler from Germany http://heuler.de/ and http://voluntarist.de/ (Google
Chrome browser can translate into English on the fly:)
Re: FDR 1007: A third way http://board.freedomainradio.com/forums/p/14090/119868.aspx
Oliver's handiwork...
Obama will resign as president http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxjkatKuwRM
http://www.freedomainradio.com/Traffic_Jams/FDR_1836_NVC_Intro.mp3
Nonviolent communication simply means connecting with feelings and needs
Needs for safety, security, and comfort need not come at the expense of needs for justice, autonomy, independence, choice, and respect
Two invaluable parenting books:
Respectful Parents, Respectful Kids: 7 Keys to Turn Family Conflict into Cooperation by Sura Hart and Victoria Kindle Hodson
http://www.nonviolentcommunication.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=48
and
Unconditional Parenting by Alfie Kohn
http://www.unconditionalparenting.com/up/
No Contest: The Case Against Competition by Alfie Kohn
http://www.alfiekohn.org/books/nc.htm
When Competition Leads To Conflict (audio interview w/ Kohn)
http://www.goodradioshows.org/peaceTalksL49.htm
Spirituality, rationally understood, pertains to a heightened awareness of one's internal and external worlds
Primitive cultures fostered conformity to the tribe - http://www.logicallearning.net/libearlyhumancon.html
Your interpretations and assessments of past experiences tend to be more important than those past experiences themselves
Change your thoughts and change your feelings
http://www.feelinggood.com/
Value judgments can be distinguished from moral judgments, and there's nothing more foundational than connecting the former with feelings and needs
http://www.cnvc.org/Training/feelings-inventory
http://www.cnvc.org/Training/needs-inventory
Max-Neef on Human Needs and Human-scale Development - http://www.rainforestinfo.org.au/background/maxneef.htm
transcendence, integration, autonomy, and connection may by our four basic drives
http://porctherapy.com/2011/02/09/porc-therapy-117-nvc-feedback-ii/
http://freekeene.com/2011/02/21/wmur-reports-on-free-keene/
Battleground: Keene
http://www.wmur.com/video/26935273/detail.html
bumper music "Carry You" by VNV Nation
http://www.vnvnation.com/
Direct download: Episode_136_-_Nonviolent_communication_reexamined.mp3
Episode 153 - Reflections on Libertopia 2011
By Wes Bertrandhttp://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
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
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
Episode 31 - Authoritarianism and family, getting personal with ethics, battles of the wills vs authenticity and self-esteem
By Wes BertrandJudge for yourself: http://freedomainradio.com/free/#RTR
Brutalization of the child
"off limits" domains of morality
Ethics: the relative and the objective
Questioning the one-way street of authoritarian morality
The psychological payoffs for evasion and obedience
Catastrophizing
http://psychcentral.com/lib/2007/what-is-catastrophizing/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_distortion
Practicing RTR
http://www.aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/stolenconcept.html
Listening to feelings
Questioning one's premises--can we look to peer-reviewed psych/phil journals for answers?
Focusing on the psychological/philosophical essentials
Being aware of the argument from morality
The Argument From Morality by Stefan Molyneux
http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig6/molyneux7.html
The payoffs for love of domination--and for enabling it
Experiments in liberty--questioning liberty is questioning oneself
Having compassion for other people's feelings, and challenging "authority"
http://www.aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/rationalization.html
Illogical philosophical catch phrases--Ayn Rand astutely noted that evil philosophies are systems of rationalizations
Defining self-esteem--self-confidence and self-respect
Staving off the feeling of being unfit to exist with defense mechanisms and pseudo self-esteem
The brutalizing process of relativistic ethics and eating invisible apples (blue pill city)
There are no conflicts among people's self-interest and self-esteem
The error of "getting" a child to eat dinner...developing a context for normalization
An anarchist’s declaration by Mike Gogulski
http://www.nostate.com/an-anarchists-declaration/
Expressing anger in trying to understand the optimal context of childrearing
Getting rid of parasitic memes
John Gottman's (http://www.gottman.com) research: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse--Criticism, Contempt, Defensiveness, and Stonewalling
'The Four Horsemen': Why Marriages Fail by Alix Spiegel
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4823861
http://www.gottman.com/press/releases/detail.php?id=13
Living an authentic life in relation to one's own mind, based on objective reality
The Anatomy of Slavespeak by Frederick Mann
http://www.buildfreedom.com/tl/tl07a.shtml
The Nature of Government by Frederick Mann
http://www.buildfreedom.com/tl/tl07b.shtml
The most important thing to show kids, besides your happiness: authentic and principled expression of values and virtues
The truth shall set us free!
Peer-reviewers' fest of altruism
Developing self-trust in one's own understanding of objective morality--and living it!
Just For Fans of Stefan Molyneux (when seemingly nice people turn nasty)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY30C6Grv3o
The Art of Self-Discovery by Nathaniel Branden (examining subconscious premises)
http://www.nathanielbranden.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_23&products_id=38
The Art of Living Consciously by Nathaniel Branden
http://www.nathanielbranden.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_23&products_id=28
Taking Responsibility by Nathaniel Branden
http://www.nathanielbranden.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_23&products_id=36
Personal evolution also means the evolution of our culture
bumper music "See You on the Other Side" by Ozzy Osbourne
http://www.ozzy.com/music/ozzmosis
Direct download: Episode_31_-_Authoritarianism_and_family_getting_personal_with_the_ethics_of_complete_liberty_battles_of_the_wills_vs_authenticity_and_self-esteem.mp3
