Category Archives: politics

if we must have politicians . . .

Posted on Friday, 2002 November 22 by Anton

I’ve seen several comments, on as many sites, saying that automatic runoff elections (as used in Australia, I believe) would eliminate the problem of spoiler candidates. True, but I prefer approval voting, which is simpler, requiring only one procedural change: … Continue reading →

Posted in politics | 1 Comment

libertarian strategy, in two senses

Posted on Tuesday, 2002 November 19 by Anton

Tony Woodlief quotes Murray Rothbard: “Most classical liberal or laissez-faire activists have adopted, perhaps without much thoughtful consideration, a simple strategy that we may call ‘educationism.’ Roughly: We have arrived at the truth, but most people are still deluded believers … Continue reading →

Posted in politics | 1 Comment

more in sorrow

Posted on Friday, 2002 November 15 by Anton

Department of Good Rants: Jim Henley (Unqualified Offerings) chides libertarians who thought good things would happen if they supported a party to which they are irrelevant.

Posted in politics | Leave a comment

liberty, equality

Posted on Tuesday, 2002 November 12 by Anton

John Rosenberg (Discriminations) writes: There is indeed a tension between equality and liberty, especially when equality is thought to mean equality of condition. The characteristically American solution to this tension is the concept of equality of opportunity, which draws on … Continue reading →

Posted in politics | 1 Comment

the unorganized militia

Posted on Saturday, 2002 October 26 by Anton

Gene Healy, whom I had not read before: Forty armed citizens out of 700 in the audience might have made it quite difficult for the [Chechen] terrorists to secure the [theatre] building. Sure, a lot of folks might have been … Continue reading →

Posted in politics, weapons | Leave a comment

ends and means

Posted on Wednesday, 2002 October 23 by Anton

The copyright clause of the US Constitution says: “Congress shall have power . . . To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries.” … Continue reading →

Posted in constitution | Leave a comment

what right?

Posted on Monday, 2002 October 21 by Anton

Now and again one hears the phrase “Israel’s right to exist”. But I can’t recall ever encountering a statement of either the substance or the grounds for such a ‘right’. Are there states that exist without right (other than all … Continue reading →

Posted in politics | 1 Comment