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Libertarians view licensing as a method for government to convert a natural right into a privilege -- one that involves paying fees to the government to exercise. Privileges can be and often are revoked by government. Rights must be held inviolate, and no one should be forced to pay to exercise a right. | Libertarians view licensing as a method for government to convert a natural right into a privilege -- one that involves paying fees to the government to exercise. Privileges can be and often are revoked by government. Rights must be held inviolate, and no one should be forced to pay to exercise a right. | ||
===2. Crime=== TO BE COMBINED WITH VICTIMLESS CRIME | ===2. Crime=== | ||
TO BE COMBINED WITH VICTIMLESS CRIME | |||
[ASSIGNED] | [ASSIGNED] | ||
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The continuing high level of violent crime -- and the government's demonstrated inability to deal with it -- threatens the lives, happiness, and belongings of Americans. At the same time, governmental violations of rights undermine the people's sense of justice with regard to crime. The appropriate way to suppress crime is through consistent and impartial enforcement of laws that protect individual rights. We call for an end to "hate crime" laws that punish people for their thoughts and speech, distract us from real crimes, and foster resentment by giving some individuals special status under the law. Laws pertaining to "victimless crimes" should be repealed since such laws themselves violate individual rights and also breed genuine crime. We applaud the trend toward private protection services and voluntary community crime control groups. We support institutional changes, consistent with full respect for the rights of the accused, that would permit victims to direct the prosecution in criminal cases. | The continuing high level of violent crime -- and the government's demonstrated inability to deal with it -- threatens the lives, happiness, and belongings of Americans. At the same time, governmental violations of rights undermine the people's sense of justice with regard to crime. The appropriate way to suppress crime is through consistent and impartial enforcement of laws that protect individual rights. We call for an end to "hate crime" laws that punish people for their thoughts and speech, distract us from real crimes, and foster resentment by giving some individuals special status under the law. Laws pertaining to "victimless crimes" should be repealed since such laws themselves violate individual rights and also breed genuine crime. We applaud the trend toward private protection services and voluntary community crime control groups. We support institutional changes, consistent with full respect for the rights of the accused, that would permit victims to direct the prosecution in criminal cases. | ||
===3. Victimless Crimes=== TO BE COMBINED WITH CRIME | ===3. Victimless Crimes=== | ||
TO BE COMBINED WITH CRIME | |||
[ASSIGNED] | [ASSIGNED] |