As the discussion has raged on about what is or is not a Libertarian, I feel it necessary to rehash some Libertarian platform issues. Although no member of the LP is bound in any way to adhere to these platform issues, these issues are pretty much in line with the LP philosophy of smaller government.

Of particular concern to me are the questions that have been raised about Social Security and Universal Health Care. I'll list the party platform position along with my personal comments to follow (the source on these, by the way, is the Libertarian Party website at www.lp.org):

Politicians in Washington are stealing your future.

Every year, they take 12.4% of your income to prop up their failed Social Security system - a system that is heading toward bankruptcy.

If you are an American earning the median income of $31,695 per year, and were given the option of investing that same amount of money in a stock mutual fund, you would retire a millionaire - without winning the lottery or a TV game show.

That million dollars would provide you with a retirement income of over $100,000 per year - about five times what you could expect from Social Security.

Even a very conservative investment strategy would yield three times the benefits promised by Social Security.

Libertarians believe you should be able to opt out of Social Security and invest your money in your own personal retirement account. An account that you own and control - one that politicians can't get their hands on.

Republicans and Democrats say it can't be done - that your Social Security taxes are needed to pay benefits to today's retirees. Instead of letting you invest in your own future, they want you to have faith that someone else will pay your benefits when it comes time for you to retire.

Although most won't admit it publicly, their "solutions" to the Social Security crises all come down to some combination of tax increases and benefit cuts.

Libertarians know that there's a better way.

Countries like Chile, Mexico, Britain, and Australia have successfully made the transition from their failed Social Security systems to healthy systems based on individual retirement accounts. In Chile, over 90% of workers have opted out of the government-run system. It's time America did as well.

The federal government owns assets worth trillions of dollars - assets that it simply doesn't need to perform its Constitutional functions. By selling those assets over time, we can keep the promises that were made to today's retirees, and to those nearing retirement, while freeing the rest of America from a failed Social Security system.

Libertarians will introduce and support legislation to give you that choice, and put you in control of your own retirement future.

Now, one could claim to be a Libertarian and still support the pyramid scheme that is Social Security remaining intact. I could also claim I was a Rhesus monkey, and my existence as a primate would superficially support that claim. But a closer examination would make it unlikely that I was, indeed, a Rhesus Monkey.

Moving on to the issue of health care:

As recently as the 1960s, low-cost health insurance was available to virtually everyone in America - including people with existing medical problems. Doctors made house calls. A hospital stay cost only a few days' pay. Charity hospitals were available to take care of families who could not afford to pay for healthcare.

Since then the federal government has increasingly intervened through Medicare, Medicaid, the HMO Act and tens of thousands of regulations on doctors, hospitals and health-insurance companies.

Today, more than 50 percent of all healthcare dollars are spent by the government.

Health insurance costs are skyrocketing. Government health programs are heading for bankruptcy. Politicians continue to pile on the regulations.

The Libertarian Party knows the only healthcare reforms that will make a real difference are those that are draw on the strength of the free market.

The Libertarian Party will work towards the following:

1. Establish Medical Saving Accounts.

Under this program, you could deposit tax-free money into a Medical Savings Account (MSA). Whenever you need the money to pay medical bills, you will be able to withdraw it. For individuals without an MSA, the Libertarian Party will work to make all healthcare expenditures 100 percent tax deductible.

2. Deregulate the healthcare industry.

We should repeal all government policies that increase health costs and decrease the availability of medical services. For example, every state has laws that mandate coverage of specific disabilities and diseases. These laws reduce consumer choice and increase the cost of health insurance. By making insurance more expensive, mandated benefits increase the number of uninsured American workers.

3. Remove barriers to safe, affordable medicines.

We should replace harmful government agencies like the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) with more agile, free-market alternatives. The mission of the FDA is to protect us from unsafe medicines. In fact, the FDA has driven up healthcare costs and deprived millions of Americans of much-needed treatments. For example, during a 10-year delay in approving Propanolol Propranolol (a heart medication for treating angina and hypertension), approximately 100,000 people died who could have been treated with this lifesaving drug. Bureaucratic roadblocks kill sick Americans

 

Now, I will start by admitting that a position for Universal Healthcare is, at least superficially, a little grayer on this particular platform position. But again, let's scrutinize this, shall we? Item #2 calls for a deregulation, an action that is unlikely to happen if health care is, indeed, made to apply universally. A fiscally conservative government is not in the practice of handing out money without accountability (read: regulation), and a liberal government, well, let's not go there.

The beauty of this country is that free speech allows us to pretty much label ourselves with any label we choose. But just as my self applied label of "pope" doesn't net me any bulk discounts on purchases of Holy Water, so do the self applied labels of "libertarian" apply when so many core principles of the party are contradicted in one's personal political platform. In the individual in question, about the ONLY thing I can find consistent with the LP platform is the push for legal marijuana; in virtually every other area, the mentality of big government overrides.

Again, I'm not a "perfect" Libertarian. But while I may stray from time to time from the "official" party platform, my views generally respect the party ethos. On the issue of abortion, for instance, it's fair to say that there's strong debate within the party; the question of whether abortion is force initiated against the most unprotected minority is asked repeatedly.

(Oh, and...I've got my card, too. Plus a spot on the ballot. So I'm equally credentialled to speak on the subject).