Most of the time during these recent elections we all heard the equivalent of: “Ain’t it awful!”, “If only the Republicans and Democrats could unite in facing the substantial problems of our day. . .” and, “I have to vote for this ‘R’ or ‘D’ candidate because her opponent is so terrible…”
What is that alternative? The Libertarian Party, the only political party that does not want to profit by being in government and that wants to control your lives as little as practicable.
What do Libertarians stand for? Thomas Jefferson said it best: “It does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are 20 gods or no God. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg.” In other words, “live and let live.” So as long as people do not wrongly affect the ability of others to live their lives as they choose, leave them alone.
So why don’t Libertarians get elected in greater numbers? The reason is that we have made a large mistake because we have allowed other people to label us. If you arbitrarily ask 100 people what the word “libertarian” means to them, they will say such things as “greed is good,” “survival of the fittest,” “drug use is fine,” and silly things of that kind.
But that’s not true. A major tenet of the libertarian philosophy is responsibility — at every level of society, including personal, group, corporate and governmental.
So how does this translate into facing our problems of today? Let me give you just a few examples, which neither the Republicans nor Democrats will employ:
• Responsibly and publicly address the issue of our government’s budget deficits. Not only is this the greatest security threat to our country, it is also a major threat to the future of our children.
• Require a declaration of war from Congress before our troops can remain in a battle zone for more than 60 days. This will result in Congress being forced publicly to analyze who our enemy is, what the threats are to our national security and interests, what our goals are and when we will have accomplished them so we can bring our troops home.
• Regularly and publicly audit each agency of government to determine what tasks are necessary, redundant or not necessary. And reduce those agencies’ budgets accordingly.
• Employ a safety net that will convert our welfare system from a crutch to a ladder. This means that the tax system will be changed to pay a stipend to augment the wages for people who earn low wages or nothing at all, but always furnish an incentive for them to earn the extra dollar and to improve themselves, which is almost totally lacking today.
• Empower parents to choose where their government money will be spent for the education of their children. This will bring competition back to our educational system that is sorely lacking today. Thus parents will choose — and receive — excellence.
• Provide a system of vouchers, on a sliding scale based upon need, for people to use in the free market for their healthcare needs. This will bring the costs of healthcare down and quality back up; and then get the government out of healthcare completely.So do yourselves and your country a favor, look into what the Libertarian Party stands for and realize that you have a positive alternative to the status quo and will actually feel good about your vote. Conduct your own research, and you will wish that more Libertarian candidates had been elected in the 2020 elections. But help is on the way, because 2022 will be with us soon.
Judge James P. Gray previously served with the Orange County Superior Court. He is the author of “All Rise! The Libertarian Way with Judge Jim Gray.” For more information, please visit www.JudgeJimGray.com.
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