News from the liberterrain…
As 2011 drew down libertarian ideas were making news as never before in the mainstream media.
The "libertarian-leaning" Ron Paul, Libertarian Party candidate for president in 1988, is seeking the Republican presidential nomination this year.
The Boston Globe published a positive article titled "Paul's libertarian message finds fans" and includes a knowledgeable history of the modern American libertarian movement.
Meanwhile former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson has moved in the opposite direction, dropping his GOP presidential bid to seek the Libertarian Party nomination.
The Las Vegas Sun covered his switch in a yearend article while MSNBC reported that his New Hampshire staffers jumped ship to support Ron Paul in that state's primary.
An Opinion piece in the Arizona Republic admonished, "True conservatives should come out of the closet and admit that they are really libertarians" because, the writer insists, "in the wake of the George W. Bush presidency, we should realize that the term conservative no longer is synonymous with liberty."
At the Huffington Post, Jacquelyn Cuddeback explained days before the Iowa Caucuses "Why Young Liberals, Like Me, Will Vote Ron Paul." After asking, "whom can I vote for?" she elaborated. "Not a president who believes it is OK to assassinate American citizens overseas, or a president who would repeal all of the progress made to protect the environment and the rights of gays."
As for independents, the Atlantic Monthly cited a Gallup Poll that asked whether big government, big business, or big labor will be the biggest threat to the country in the future and found "64% of independents today view big government as the biggest threat."
The Libertarian Party's website catchphrase is "Minimum Government, Maximum Freedom."
But it's not just about capital L Libertarian Party politics. The move toward philosophical lowercase l libertarianism is also growing.
A Washington Post article began, "Christians from the left and the right are increasingly turning to libertarianism not because it is a "middle ground," but because it is an entirely different way of thinking about government and power."
After noting Gary Johnson's bid for the Libertarian Party presidential nomination, new Libertarian Party Executive Director Carla Howell observed in her New Year's message, "If Ron Paul were to win the GOP nomination, a true Revolution in America would be underway. One that would put our libertarian agenda front-and-center in the 2012 election."
(Sidebar: more LibertyManiacs here)
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