The official blog of the Libertarian Party
June 29, 2006
Convention Blogging
Despite flight delays caused by the heavy rains on the east coast, most of the national staff has arrived at the LP Convention in Portland. Delegates are starting to show, and the Bylaws and Platform committees are already meeting.
We managed to get Michael Dixon national television yesterday, where he discussed smoking bans on CNBC. Shane Cory went on Air America, where he covered the LP convention.
The convention also drew some pretty good local press, including this one from The Oregonian. Here's a clip:
The party is all about personal tolerance and fiscal responsibility, which is why it attracts a broad spectrum of political types, said Richard Burke, executive director of the Libertarian Party of Oregon.
The party chose Portland for this year's meeting because the Oregon chapter has become increasingly visible in state politics, Burke said.
"We're not dominant," he said, "but we've crossed the threshold of being relevant. They wanted to reward that."
Party officials will meet Thursday, and a number of committee and caucus meetings and workshops are scheduled for Friday. But the main action gets into gear Friday night with a reception at the Hilton hotel in downtown Portland, followed by floor sessions Saturday and Sunday to put together the party's national platform.
Oregon's Libertarian candidate for governor, Richard Morley, will talk at Friday night's reception. Burke said he invited Democratic Gov. Ted Kulongoski and Republican candidate Ron Saxton as well. Kulongoski won't make the event, a spokeswoman said. Saxton's campaign could not be reached on whether he will attend.
We'll try to cover as much as we can from the key convention activities on this blog, so stay tuned.
Posted by Stephen Gordon at June 29, 2006 02:30 PM
Reader Comments:
Remind the other delegates to keep the Platform relevant to today's issues, realistic in terms of proposals that will attract sufficient voter support, and then turn the Brevity Caucus loose on wordiness and grad school wonkery.
For someone like myself who is just beginning to warm to the idea of libertarianism, what do you guys suggest I do to find out if this philosophy is really my own? I've taken "the quiz" and even the one on the Ludwig von Mises Institute webpage, and both of those put me as a conservative-leaning libertarian. But, before I invest in registering as a Libertarian or anything of that nature, I want to make sure that this isn't just a phase because I've learned a lot about it lately.
Feel free to email me (seaspeas@yahoo.com) or reply to this post, either way is fine with me.
HEY! I like gradschool wonkery!
Marcus, all you can really do is think and think some more. Both Libertarian sites and sites of our opponents will help you in that process.
And, uh, Tim...?
Marcus: You can start the learning process by watching John Stossel on ABC's "20/20" show (Friday nights, 10 PM). He wrote a book a few years ago that promoted a lot of libertarian ideas and solutions (and it's very easy reading), and just recently had another book released, although I haven't read this one.
There are some others supporting libertarian ideas through TV, radio, books, and websites, but others here can tell you about that.
I like wonkery too, but in White Papers. There, the reader can see the stats, etc. that back up one's argument. But not in the Platform planks or soundbites. Actually, I don't think there is much wonkery in the present platform, but let's
not be tempted. What's principally wrong with the Platform is presentation of non-issues (at least in the minds of average voters) and positions on principles that are no longer understood (thanks to govt schools) without reference to political philosophy texts.
Let's vote to shorten, simplify, be realistic, and offer thinking voters a chance to ride along with us for a few stops on the Freedom Train's journey to its final destination.
I think the biggest problem with the LP is that there is almost a sense of nihilism within the Party itself. I notice the LP shop still has stuff that says "Don't blame me, I voted Libertarian!" which says to me that voting for the LP is a waste of a vote; it might not carry the burden of voting GOP or Democrat, but by using that phrase I think we are perpetuating a degree of uselessness. Granted, it's humorous, but if we're going to be taken seriously then we need to act as if we are, in fact, a party as viable if not more viable than the two major parties.
Thanks for the reading suggestions everyone. Some of you sent emails, and the information on here has helped a lot.
Marcus, if you find yourself agreeing with the fundamentals of libertarian philsophy then you are a libertarian. You don't have to agree with everything. And you can be a libertarian without being a Libertarian.
Marcus, if you find yourself agreeing with the fundamentals of libertarian philsophy then you are a libertarian. You don't have to agree with everything. And you can be a libertarian without being a Libertarian.
Like Marcus I am quite new to Libertarianism, and I have scoured the internet for information. I also have been frustrated by not being able to find information related to current issues. I guess the blog is helping, but the heading on the web site "the issues" doesn't really talk about the issues.
I have been looking for more blogs and podcasts, but haven't found much. Are there any more sources of information out there? That Mises web site and the like don't mean much to an average guy like me.
Thanks.
First of all, I love the name "thedudeisnotin." I presume that's a reference to "The Big Lebowski," one of the funniest movies ever. Well done.
As for information, the Mises website is full of good works. I know you said it doesn't help, but on that site you can find full text versions of Austrian economics books and articles on that site (just drag your mouse over Resources and click on "Human Action" or "Man, Econ, and State"), just browse around. Read things by Rothbard, Hayek, DiLorenzo, and of course Mises. That site is full of classic texts.
Also, LibertyFund is great if you want to find specific works. Go to google.com and type in LibertyFund Online Library. There are like 444 authors to choose from, ranging from Plato to Thomas Jefferson to Adam Smith to Karl Marx.
I've always heard Hayek's "The Road to Serfdom" was a great book, although I've never read it. Mises's most renowned work is "Human Action," available in full-text from the Mises website. It's also been suggested to me that I read Harry Browne's "Why Government Doesn't Work," which I plan to read ASAP.
Hope this helps.
Thanks, I'll check those books out. And yes, The Big Lebowski is one of the greatest movies ever.
For those who are looking for more info on the LP and libertarian philosophy:
We're a party made up of people. As such, we all have our own opinions. Some of us spend endless hours splitting hairs in debates, but at the end of the day, we all agree on one thing: the government that governs best, governs least.
The Kansas LP's motto is "Personal Responsibility * Individual Liberty". To me that says it all.
Folks, this isn't a dogmatic religion, it's a political party. You don't have to agree with every single statement ever made by any LP member to join and help. If you agree with the premise of less government, join the party, get involved, state your opinions, and learn from those of others.
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Remind the other delegates to keep the Platform relevant to today's issues, realistic in terms of proposals that will attract sufficient voter support, and then turn the Brevity Caucus loose on wordiness and grad school wonkery.
Posted by: Creech at June 29, 2006 04:13 PM