Good sources to learn more about Libertarianism

Zeromus

I'm interested in learning more about Libertarianism, because I feel like my personal beliefs are starting to swing that way. I'd really just like to know more about it, though.

Web searches have given me the basics, but it's hard to really know how reliable, accurate, or in-depth the information is. Any books or other sources you might recommend?

Thanks.

Thanatos

There is such a huge array of definitions of what is meant by "libertarianism." Do you mean you favor free markets? Do you mean you favor individual rights, as in a civil libertarian? Do you mean that you value individual freedom, above all else, both economic and civil freedoms? Do you mean that you favor a weak government? Do you mean that you think the government is the source of all that is evil, and business is the source of all that is good?

Zeromus

I guess that's part of the problem I'm having. There really isn't a way to just say "I'm a Libertarian!" because, yes, that can mean different things.

Thanatos wrote:

Do you mean you favor individual rights, as in a civil libertarian? Do you mean that you value individual freedom, above all else, both economic and civil freedoms?

This seems pretty accurate, though.

Fristle

I think Barnes and Noble booksellers carry Reason magazine on their racks. It's a libertarian periodical.

Oh and since I already included a Wikipedia link, there's a whole sidebar there on learning about Libertarianism.

Disclaimer: this is for informational purposes only, I am not endorsing Libertarianism (or condemning it)

senor_x

I spent some time dicking around on this site a while back: http://www.libertarianism.com/books.htm

Spaz

Reading Anarchy, State, and Utopia by Robert Nozick might be helpful, I know it's only one strand of Libertarianism but it seems right up your alley and it's a decent book if you buy that stuff.

Thanatos

There have been a couple of decent D&D threads in the past few months regarding libertarianism, here and here. There are very few nice things said in those threads regarding libertarians, but if you really want to learn about libertarianism, you should probably hear some of the counter-arguments to it, to.

You should really think about just how much you believe in the free market, versus how much you believe in civil liberties. Civil libertarians tend to vote Democrat, whereas free-market, small-government libertarians tend to vote Republican (by "tend to," I'm talking 70-30 to 80-20 margins, in general). There's the Libertarian Party, too, but they've had delusions of meaningfulness for decades.

CrossBuster

Capitalism Magazine has a lot of commentary on culture and current events from a somewhat libertarian standpoint.

Just so you know, most of the regular contributors are objectivists, which can be off-putting to even some of the most hardcore libertarians.

ElectricTurtle

Spaz wrote: »

Reading Anarchy, State, and Utopia by Robert Nozick might be helpful, I know it's only one strand of Libertarianism but it seems right up your alley and it's a decent book if you buy that stuff.

Signed. However I don't know how many people can fully appreciate some of its deep and detailed abstractions.

CrossBuster: Somebody really needs to end the ridiculous schism between objectivists and libertarians. It really surprises me how so many objectivists make the same mistakes about libertarians as the rest of society, namely that libertarianism is a philosophy as opposed to a simple political movement. It isn't up to libertarian politics to make value distinctions between a worthless legal act and a productive legal act, ultimately they are simply both legal, and that's all that should matter to a political movement because libertarianism is not a philosophy. I think other objectivists (I consider myself one) simply don't want to share any bed space with people who might be politically similar who might otherwise not be (wholly) ethically/morally similar, which is just simple intolerance, and very unproductive to boot. Bleh.

To OP: You might also look into what the Cato Institute is up to, as well as their most esteemed H. L. Mencken research fellow, P. J. O'Rourke. P.J.'s books are much more approachable than Robert Nozick, and give a more common man's idea of libertarianism. Specifically I'd look at Parliament of Whores, Eat the Rich, and All the Trouble in the World.

CyberJackal

I wouldn't go to D&D if you want information that is reliable and accurate.

I'm sure you've already found it, but the American Libertarian party's website is here. Though as some have said, there are different varieties of libertarianism, so keep that in mind.

The Cat

Yes, do, given that the American LP party policies as stated on their website are incoherent and crushingly naive at best.

Thanatos

CyberJackal wrote: »

I wouldn't go to D&D if you want information that is reliable and accurate.

I'm sure you've already found it, but the American Libertarian party's website is here. Though as some have said, there are different varieties of libertarianism, so keep that in mind.

Most of the information in those threads is accurate, just biased. Just like a lot of the information on the party website is probably accurate, but again, biased. They're just biased in different directions.

themightypuck

For more general ideas about individualism v collectivism I'd read Karl Popper "The Open Society and It's Enemies" and Fredrich Hayek "The Road to Serfdom".

AngelHedgie

If you're looking for a critique as well, I'd recommend Mike Huben's well done one.

Zeromus

Having done some further research, I suppose I'm a "Consequentialist Libertarian" (if any type of Libertarian).

Thanks for all of your help by the way, guys.

Thanatos

I'll go ahead and lock it up, then, since this thread is a total infraction-trap (mostly for me :P).