Liberalism
Despite American prejudices to the contrary, I refuse to abandon the word ‘liberal’ for what it has almost always historically stood for throughout the world – reason, liberty, property, and free trade. Liberalism in the American context is typically synonymous with the Welfare State, Progressivism, Social Democracy, and the Democratic Party. But for almost the [...]
Anarchy and Monarchy
Neither anarchy nor monarchy is well understood in America today. To most Americans, anarchists are violent nihilists and monarchs are laughable buffoons. So when I advocate something like ‘anarcho-monarchism’, the masses really get confused. In addition, many leftist anarchists claim that rightist anarchism (anarcho-capitalism, anarcho-monarchism, etc.) can’t even exist. But that is a criticism that [...]
Right and Left
Revisiting the issues of Left and Right, it was Erik von Kuehnelt-Leddihn’s analysis that placed identity on the Left and diversity on the Right. A similar analysis can be found in the writings of Robert Nisbet, but where EKL focuses on identity and diversity, Nisbet focuses on what he views as the two great traditions [...]
Libertarian Dictatorship?
Jesse Walker wrote an interesting article over at Reason about the notion by some libertarians that a transitional dictatorship could be a positive step towards liberty, specifically in regard to Hayek’s (qualified) praise of Chilean dictator, Pinochet. In general, I agree with his conclusion. Dictatorships are a messy business and they scarcely lead to more [...]
Left Libertarianism
Is Libertarianism Left or Right? I consider it of the Right (properly understood) but others have argued differently. Back in the ’60s, Murray Rothbard argued that it was Left, while socialism was in the Middle, and conservatism was Right. Karl Hess, Roderick T. Long, and many others have subscribed to this perspective of left-libertarianism; Hans-Hermann [...]
What happened to the Conservative Movement?
The Conservative Movement used to be a movement of high culture and elitism. Across the Conservative spectrum, we had great intellectual minds that articulated the principles of conservatism in America. Today, the Conservative-Republican movement is largely a herdist movement that disdains intellectualism and whose ‘heroes’ are individuals such as Mark Levin, Rush Limbaugh, and Sean [...]
The difference between Left and Right
So many people misunderstand the differences between Left and Right. Again and again, one can hear such statements as “Nazism was right-wing”, “Fascism is right-wing”, “General Franco’s Spain was Fascist”, “Republicans are Fascists”, etc. Tangentially related are the arguments espoused by some libertarians that “There is no such thing as Authority” or “I’m free, I [...]
