Libertarians are way more like the Jedi. Noble, hard-working, pro-democracy and defenders of freedom. Although, no mind control tricks.

I'm just shocked Mr. O'Reilly even uttered the "L" word on the air. Don't let us forget this is the same guy who cancelled an interview with Michael Badnarik while he was en route to the FoxNews studios, and was too afraid to debate Gary Nolan (or was it Aaron Russo?) after challenging any American to a debate on the claim the Patriot Act is taking rights away from Americans.

Bill O also doesnt know his ass from a hole in the ground. I cannot believe people take that moron seriously. His main debate tactic is turing down the microphone of his opposition. He rarely even has a worthy opponent on his show. '

I once heard him claim that Libertarians were endangering his family by opposing the unconstitutional criminalization of marijuana. He kept shouting "Libertines, Libertines!!"

jnice, it was Aaron Russo who initially raised a stink over an interview being cancelled. It was actually some other person who was en route to the show and was cancelled because they didn't want him to say he was Libertarian. The kicker was that they picked an alternate guest who plugged Mike on the air (you can probably search for it on the Badnarik blog).

Badnarik then went on the offensive with Russo, but O'Reilly pulled out on his "dare" and refused to have either of them on the show. The original dare was to show that rights were being taken away, he later renegged and made it so you had to show your rights had been violated... I'm sure the innocent guys who were returned to the UK from Gitmo a few months ago could take him up on that now.

Is this really an issue?

No, it's not really an issue. Just a fun post.

Well, at least O'Reilly was being honest by accident. He admitted he can't tell a Libertarian...he certainly wouldn't dare tell a Libertarian guest anything on national TV. He'd get his butt whupped if he did. That's why he won't choose to let a Libertarian appear on his show.

Well, Libertarians have appeared on the show and he just uses his usual tactics.

I say we should all E-mail Mr. O'Reilly; and tell him to recognise Libertarians on his show.

Mr. O needs to get out more often. Maybe if he invited more Libertarians on the show outside of Bill Maher; Maybe he would get the message.

Libertarians are nothing like Jedi, hopefully, who say that "Only the Sith deals in absolutes." We are very absolutist ethically. I've never seen a Libertarian carrying around a lightsaber. Plus, the Jedi are often military aggressors! In Episode One, aren't they trying to subdue some trade cartel or something???
To respond to all the anti-Bill sentiments flying around here, I think he's wrong on most things and not a Libertarian, but you do have to give him credit for being far and away the most (perhaps the only) entertaining guy in news.

Democracy is not freedom
Democracy is un-American.

Mr. O'Reilly was clearly making a joke without any negative intentions.

Are we taking things a bit too serious, ladies and gentlemen?

Libertarians understand humor. Do they not? :)

-Brandon D

Bill O'Reily may come on Fox News nightly talking a good game and Insult people, but when it comes to him their is a old saying " put your foot were your mouth is". If Bill O'Reily really belives in what he says on his political views he should run as a canidate for elected office.

Sincerly,
Josh Ondich

Odd. I always thought we would resemble the human race; intelligent to an extent, radical in ideology, and searching for a fulfilling political/survival philosophy. Wookies'll do though. They're just so cute and cuddly! *rolls eyes*

look at it this way, bill prolly helped us out.

some fan of his was probably watching and thought, "whats a libertarian?". then got on the internet, googled it, and got lp.org, and looked at the party platform and went "hey, i agree with this"

more publicity for libertarians

Libertarians wouldn't be Jedi Knights. That'd involve an initiation of Force. :p We WOULD lobby against lightsaber control laws in the Galactic Senate, I'm sure, but that'd be the extent of it.

Nah... if a Libertarian was in the Star Wars universe, he'd probably be Han Solo. Smuggling contraband and making money off of both sides in the war, but eventually siding with the Rebel Alliance against the Galactic Empire... much like Badnarik's campaign sided with Kerry in some swing states, trying to draw Republican votes. Only difference would be that Han Solo the Libertarian wouldn't actually SUCCEED in getting Emperor Palpatine thrown out of office. :p

Considering how many elections we Libertarians loose, I would think there would be more people out there with their arms out of their sockets.

Any "true" Star Wars fans will appreciate the joke.

Bill O'Reilly is a blowhard and doesn't deserve a minute of our attention.

Good post. Good job linking to another blog. That's what blogging is all about. Keep up the good work and thanks for blogging LP!

You know, O'Really could have said "the difference between a wookie and a tribble," and he would have had Trek and Star Wars fandom up in arms. But he said "Libertarian." Why do you think he did that? He was a'trollin'. He was baiting bears and we took the bait. He pushed our button and our knees jerked, as expected.

What we need to do is send him a poster of Chewbacca, wearing a button (or holding a placard) that says, "don't blame the Empire on me -- I voted Libertarian." Or maybe a candid snapshot of the Wookie delegation at last year's LP convention, waving Badnarik pennants and the like. With a guy like O'Really, ya just gotta joke him.

Bill O'Reilley consistantly seeks to fill a much need gap in American politics. He is hardly worth the eloquent response in Mr. Seehusen's open letter.
However, in reading it myself I was deeply moved and inspired. These decades of hard work, disappointemnts and frustrations sometimes cause me to feel all my efforts are for naught, then someone comes along and reminds me that this is about more than me. This is about our country, about future generations and about the advance of human liberty itself.
An ounce of inpsiration is worth a pound of sweat. Well done!

Nathaniel:

Libertarians = C3PO? That's a pretty lame joke.

Oh, wait, I get it. You're referring to what Wookies are known to do and not what actually happened to C3PO.

I have to admit that some of our meetings
do end up looking like the infamous
'Bar Scene' from the first Star
Wars movie ;-)

If you want to appear less Wookie-like to the Bill O'Reillys and Darth Vaders of the world, as well as to the vast majority of U.S. voters, I suggest the following reading list:

Campaign Books: (nuts and bolts of organizing a political campaign)

The Campaign Manager- by Catherine Shaw

How To Win a Local Election - by Judge Lawrence Gray

Winning Elections - by Faucheux

All's Fair - by Mary Maitlin and James Carville.
Enlightening blow-by-blow account of the 1992 Presidential campaign as told by both the Bush and Clinton camps.

How To Beat the Democrats (and other subversive ideas) - by David Horowitz (Good rhetoric to use in press releases and in speeches if you change 'Republican' to 'Libertarian.')

Sales Books:
Selling for Dummies -by Tom Hopkins
Prospecting for Dummies - by Tom Hopkins
Advanced Sales Strategies - by Brian Tracy

The 25 habits of Highly Successful Salespeople - by Steve Schiffman
Power Sales Presentations - by Steve Schiffman

Fundraising Books
Fundraising For Dummies - another yellow and black dummies book which is excellent.

If every LP activist would read one sales book and one campaign book, we would be light-years ahead of where we are now. All of our decisions would be better - informed. Our public perception would be better.

We all need to understand and appreciate that we are in the communications business.

Also cassette tapes and CDs are available by the same authors. Brian Tracy- The Psychology of Selling is an excellent two-tape program which will help you persuade people to join the LPPa or to accept L/libertarian platform positions.

So use the Force (of marketing and salesmanship)

May the Force be with you.

tim.

To be honest, I thought the Libertarian Party's stance on this whole affair was a little over-reactionary. Everyone knows that Bill O'Reilly is mostly crazy-talk, and we shouldn't get so huffy-puffy over the comment he made.

As an original (former) Star Wars geek and current spelling Nazi, I must point out that the correct spelling is Wookiee.

Bill O'reilly doesn't have the integrity he used to have. More people despise him now than they did over a year ago, even the people that loved him before hate him now. However, yes, it is sad that people still do blindly worship him...and that's enough people to keep him on the air.

This blog post makes us sound more like Star Wars fanboys than the saviours of this country. I'm sure most people don't know what a Twi'lek is.

I am totally fine with not sending a letter. It's B.O.'s problem if he doesn't know a movie character from a political party. As a political talk show host, if he doesn't know the full range of the political landscape, then it speaks to his credit (in this case, lack of). B.O. makes it clear through his actions who and what he supports. What he supports is at odds with the principals of the LP.

So really, when he had the chance to make fun of the LP, he did. It's fine, I could really care less. In fact he came off as a real idiot when he said it. Even my 90 year old grandfather knows the difference and he's not a political talk show host. He's just smart :)

p.s. ignore me, lack of coffee and office cube confinment

Poor, benighted fellow, Bill O'Reilly is. The distinction is easy to make: Wookiees are hairy and brown. Among libertarians, there's only one who's Harry and Browne.

Micheal Medvez (sp?) refers to Libertarians as "Losertarians" on his talk show.

I just think Bill's comment was light hearted and funny.

Well, there is one positive side to this... At least he mentioned us. The cruelest statement of all is the one that is never made because it doesn't even come to mind.

Where is the Libertarian response to the recent Supreme Court ruling regarding primaries in Oklahoma??? Where our our priorities here??

Krishna wrote:

"Democracy is not freedom
Democracy is un-American."

This is very true and it is amazing to me how many libertarians do not grasp this very fundamental issue.

Mike wrote: "Where is the Libertarian response to the recent Supreme Court ruling regarding primaries in Oklahoma??? Where our our priorities here??"

Here's my response, Mike. The Supreme Court is both too liberal and too conservative at the same time. It's long past time we had a libertarian Supreme Court.

Luke, succumb to the Dark Side.

I am your father, Darth Republican.

Uh, point of order?

Wookiees don't live in trees. E'Woks do. See "Star Wars: Return of the Jedi".

well maybe Libs are more like Ewoks....ruggedly individualistic and peace loving...

Hmm...and to change the subject, I'm new to libertarian ideas, I'm 18, and I like what I hear, (I read "Libertarianism: A Primer") what can I do at a local level to help spread the word about libertarianism?

Kyle: the most important thing is to start building a local Libertarian Party in your town. Take a look at the resources listed above by Tim Crowley. They're a good place to start. We need local LP political machines in every town across the country, if we're going to win back our liberty.

I just found a great online website for political consultants. Kyle, you might want to check this one out as well:

http://www.campaignline.com

Mike wrote:
Krishna wrote:

"Democracy is not freedom
Democracy is un-American."

This is very true and it is amazing to me how
many libertarians do not grasp this very
fundamental issue.

Are you advocating anarchy?

from someone who really doesn't know a lot about libertarianism.

Bill who?

Wookies speak their mind, but are misunderstood by the mind-numbed majority.

Some of his "other" work.
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1013043mackris14.html

Any publicity for the Libertarian brand is good publicity. Apparrantly, we were as much at the top of his mind as the new Star Wars movie. Thanks, Bill O.!
Good letter in response, as well.
Jedi are mystical altruists. No Randians, they.
I'd say that other than Han Solo and the Wookiees, Senator (Princess?) Amidala is the greatest Libertarian of the Star Wars movie universe. After the evil Palpatine aranges a vote to make himself emperor and replace the old Republic with an Empire, the delegates aplaud and Padme says "So this is how Liberty dies... with thunderous aplause."
The tyrany of democracy.
Palpatine uses fear of war to increase his political power. Sounds familiar, no?
Then there's Padme's daughter, Leia. She tells Darth Vader "The more you tighten your grip, the more star systems will slip through your fingers." This is the ultimate statement about the futility of central control and authoritarian power.

Hamish -

No, I am not an anarchist. The founding fathers knew the dangers of a democracy and therefore based our constitution on a Republic.

As a seven year member of the Libertarian Wookie Club I must say I am greatly offended at the defensive stance taken at the offensive. . .

what was I saying???

Oh, nevermind. I am glad to have a discussion about it, but I would really love to see O'realy put his money where his mouth is and actually interview a Libertarian about the subject. And I mean Badnarik or Boaz or Browne (all of which have great books on the subject!!!).

Scott Lindsley

PS, It was our own brilliant star Dean Ahmad that was told he could not mention the Libertarian Party or Badnarik on the show.

Was Bill petrified that a favourable mention (even by a Muslim {gasp!!!}) of Badnarik would unseat Bush? I think the simple answer to that question is yes.

I will repost the e-mail Dean Ahmad sent me to my Blog so you can check out the story from Dean's POV.

Bill Naivar wrote:
"Uh, point of order?

Wookiees don't live in trees. E'Woks do. See "Star Wars: Return of the Jedi"."

My response : Your point of order is out of order; Wookiees DO live in trees! Check your facts first. ;)

O'Reilly is a pompous, self righteous egotistical A-hole. He's a liberal that plays both sides to build audience.

By the I am not much of a star wars person.
I believe there are things worth fighting for. Personal liberty needs to be restored to our "REPUBLIC!"

Does somebody censor these message boards? I posted something a little while back that I think was deleted, and as far as I know there was no profanity. I guess my views weren't in keeping with the Libertarian Party's views.

"Wookiees are hairy and brown. Among libertarians, there's only one who's Harry and Browne."

*That* was LP humor at its best. BO stinks, as always... Take him with a grain of salt. He's about worth as much.

Tito: I'm pretty certain the webmaster doesn't censor the boards for stuff the powers-that-be disagree with. To do that would violate what we libertarians believe in, which includes free speech.

What was the essence of your message? Do you remember what you wrote?

Wookiee, not wookie.

Bill's comments were, indeed, harmful to our party.

This was a very hypocritical move for Bill, considering how long he was a bona fide member of the LP. To choose this word amongst every other option was very disturbing to me. It was his way of using our party's name to further the "mystique" behind his motives or affiliations.

Anyone who thinks otherwise is sniffing a steaming cowpie.

C'mon! How often does our party's name get mentioned on a show with millions of viewers?

Not often enough.
And obviously, not in the desirable context.

Anyone ever read Michael Cloud's article's here?

Actually the Republicans are more like Luke's aunt and uncle, not so much the sith. Rednecks.

I think wookies would make good socialist libertarians.

I'm not sure what to say other than HA HA at the term "socialist libertarians" or "libertarian socialists." Socialism, by the way, is far too illiberal for wookies.

Libertarian TV: I was just saying some of the more libertarian views that Bill O'Reilly has and that we should all remember that he isn't necessarily all against us. Maybe it didn't post correctly, I don't know.

Tito: your comment definitely does not sound like something the webmasters of this site would delete. You can rest assured that you were dealing with some sort of technical glitch. Perhaps you previewed your comment but forgot to actually post it?

"Libertarianism: A Primer" by David Boaz has really helped me out. It's a fantastic read!! Why don't more people open their eyes to this stuff! Also, the animation on the frontpage of www.growthelp.org, "The Philosophy of Liberty", is really amazing. I'm glad there's so much out there for people to read into. And in the words of William Wallace: "Freeeeeedddooommm!"

I'm proud to be a Wookie. I mean, a Libertarian.

Republican's are definitely the sith. Secretive, evil warmongers. I'm a redneck and I vote libertarian. Maybe I'm just an extremely well shaved redheaded wookie, or excuse me WOOKIEE! BTW I gave up watching TV along time ago, so who is Bill O'Reilly?

Here's the rundown....
Libertarians - Wookiees
Democrats - Gungans and Twi'leks
Republicans - Trade Federation and Droid Army
And the shadowy secret super-government with
it's black helicopters and and ambitions of
world domination will be the Sith.

If he doesn't know much about Star Wars because he can't tell a wookie from a libertarian, then doesn't that also mean that he doesn't know much about his politics either?

Hmmm...

Bill O'Reilly hosts a talk show on Fox called, "The O'Reilly Factor." It's basically a program for the modern conservative movement and has a substantially large audience. His program's motto is that it is the "No Spin Zone," a dubious claim at best.

I used to watch BO regularly. No more since I figured out that since I don't agree with him I must be "un-americian, ill informed, or just plain stupid (insert your own insult here)". This seemes to be BO's favorite tactic.

I would add to the above that if BO took the Worlds Smallest Political Quiz he woud almost shurly score statist/authoritarian.

Mr. O'reilly's comparison of Libertarians to Wookies while intending to be derogatory was actually a compliment. After all, Wookies were in favor of protecting and preserving individual freedom and democracy. The fact that Mr.O'reily doesnt know the difference only shows his ignorance and biased oppinion. On the other hand the fact that Libertarians were mentioned is a free advertisement to millions of viewers for Libertarians. I welcome Mr. O'reilly to mention Libertarians and the Party as often as he likes because it reminds the public that there is an alternative to the warfare/welfare state and that we are being taken more seriosly every day, even by the most biased of the politicly active.

By the way, I love free speech, even if it offends me(which doesn't happen very often) because it provokes an emotion which in turn causes me to take action!

Liberty and Justice for all!

Not to be off-topic, but I think the LP should have some sort of centralized location on the website where we can find links to all sorts of libertarian webcasts, podcasts, radio shows, etc.

If we can't beat the media, we have to become the media.

I personally love both of Harry Browne's radio shows (politics and investment) as well as Free Talk Live (although I have problems streaming it sometimes). I wish there was a central place I can go to find more libertarian talk shows.

Does anyone know if Harry Browne's radio show is on in New York? If so, then what station is he on?

why are Twi'leks dems? *plays a twi on Star Wars Galaxies* just curious ^^

I actually started rooting for the Sith in the latest installment of the Star Wars movies. The only thing particularly evil about them is that they act the part -- not what they do especially. Darth Sitius (sp?) was completely understanding when Annikan (again, sp?) when to tell the Jedi council about him. Then, they came to illegally take Sitius into custody and subsequently make two attempts on his life.

That plot line goes way beyond motivating Annikan's move to the dark side all the way to making the Jedi look every bit as corrupt as the Sith. The only way you can easily tell the difference is that the Jedi are all full of the inverted-sentence-zen-speak while the Sith sort of hiss when they talk and otherwise take pleasure in routing their enemies. I, personally, side with Conan the Barbarian on that particular note, so....

I guess that makes me proud to be called a wookie.

(P.S. I am not pro-democracy. I am pro-liberty. The two are quite distinct from each other.)

Tommy,

I listen to the archived shows on his website:
www.harrybrowne.org

I shudder to think what might have happened if BO had more than just mentioned Libertarians. The volume and sacchrine rhetoric of the responses here may well have soaked up all the bandwidth that this fine website does possess.

Seriously, tempest in the teacup much? As far as the comments themselves, I can't help but think of a certain kettle and pot, along with an alledged absense of light, when you consider the far more amusing anecdotes that have been made in the reponses above.

Lighten up, put your sandwich board back on, and get back to scaring pedestrians.

Sorry to correct my father, but yes, Wookiees do live in Trees. On their home planet of Kashyyk, even the Wookiees,, who are known as fierce warriors and hunters, are terrified to go below the canopy of their home planet. To do so is actually a rite of passage for them.