Libertarian Stance on Issues
Philosophy
Libertarians generally define liberty as the freedom to do whatever one wishes as long as one does not initiate force for fraud against others; proportionate defense against aggression is acceptable. Behavior that interferes with or endanger another's person or property may or may not be considered acceptable, depending on circumstances.
Libertarians generally view constraints imposed by the state on persons or their property, beyond providing basic police and judicial services, as a violation of liberty. Libertarian anarchists favor no governmental constraints at all, believing that without the rule of government - and its "monopoly on violence" - individuals will naturally form self-governing social bonds and rules. Libertarian minarchists believe that individuals will continue to need some minimal level of government services, at least at the local, state or regional level. This includes protecting people and their property from crime and military defense.
Below is a brief summary of how these principles are applied to three primary areas: individual liberty, economics, and defense and foreign policy.
Individual liberty
Crime and Justice
Criminal laws should be limited in their application to violations of the rights of others through force or fraud, or to deliberate actions that place others involuntarily at significant risk of harm. Many libertarians emphasize mediation and arbitration of disputes and compensation to the victim more than punishment or retribution. Most libertarians allow that such sanctions are properly imposed by the state in the form of criminal or civil penalties. Manys believe voluntary or "anarchist" solutions are preferable to state interference.
Victimless Crimes
Libertarians extend their believe in individual liberty to legalization of all "victimless crimes" imposed largely for religious or moral reasons. This includes activities such as sex work and prostitution, drug use, gambling, ownership of weapons, etc. Liberarians believe that if is no victim, there is no crime.
Abortion
The majority of Libertarians, whether "pro-life" or "pro-choice", agree that the government should stay out of the issue of abortion of the fetus. Some do support laws restricting abortion in the second or third trimester, some from conception; some support only state or local government legistlation or enforcement. Pro-Choice Libertarians and Libertarians for Life have differing positions on the issue.
Free Speech
Libertarians strongly support free speech rights and the right split on the issue, between ones believing in complete deregulation of these and the majority believing in that they can be taken away if they infringe on others peoples rights. The issues being here between issues such as screaming "fire" in a movie theater, or the privacy of a suspected terrorist. However most libertarians believe extremely strongly in these amendments, perhaps beyond other Libertarian stances.
Privacy
Libertarians want to end government practices of spying on citizens and support the rights recognized by the Fourth Amendment to be secure in our persons, homes, property, and communications and to be protected against unreasonable search and seizure.
Gun Control
Libertarians believe in the right to bear arms and the right to self defense. They oppose government restrictions of private ownership and use of weapons, as long as they are not used for purposes of force, intimidation or fraud.
Immigration
Most libertarians believe in the right of peaceful people to immigrate into the United States. Many support restrictions due to disease or criminal history. Some support stronger restrictions on other criteria. All agree that welfare programs should be phased out and that doing so will discourage those who come to this country primarily to obtain such benefits.
Economics
Taxes
Libertarians, especially those that believe in some form of anarcho-capitalism, oppose the property, gas, excise, cigarette, alcohol, soda, payroll, gun and income tax as well as tariffs. A few support sales or "fair" tax ideas.
Free Trade
Libertarians strongly believe in free trade both within national borders and among members of different nations. They believe free trade leads to a health economy and peaceful international relations. However, most libertarians oppose "free trade" agreements like GATT, WTO and NAFTA, believing they are managed trade pacts which benefit powerful special interests.
Education
Libertarians are opposed to spending tax money on public schools, because schools' purpose is often indoctrination and most public schools provide substandard educations as opposed to private schools where students can choose what best fit their needs.
Welfare, Social Security, and Healthcare
Social welfare programs are the majority of national and many state budgets because politicians effectively have bribed voters. These programs often redistribute wealth from low income workers to high income retirees and bureaucrats. In the early 1900s the federal and state governments began to create such programs to shut down the thousands of popularly voluntary associations which provided such services to the truly needy, without massive bureaucratic overhead and fraud. Without having so much of their income siphoned off for poorly administered programs, taxpayers could contribute to truly effective social welfare programs. Libertarians propose selling off most federal assets to create accounts to help truly disabled elderly and other individuals and to create educational and job opportunities for others.
National defense and foreign policy
Libertarians support military non-interventionism in the world as our current interventionist policies have spent trillions of dollars in unnecessary wars and supports a military establishment of 100s of military bases in a majority of the world's nations. Libertarians are opposed to foreign aid to other countries as an extension of an interventionist policy that has angered billions of people worldwide.
Links
Hot Issues
Hot Issues
Platform on LP.ORG
Libertarian Party platform
Are you Libertarian