So is libertarian now NOT right wing?

[proud2BlibKansan]

I just had a wingnut tell me that the Koch brothers are not right wing because they're libertarians.

[Kablooie]

1. Well, the first part of the word libertarian sounds like liberal so I guess not.

[booley]

2. he's full of BS

There are right and left libertarians

The Koch brothers fall squarely into the right wing libertarian camp (economic neo-liberals)

Your wing nut may not want to believe the Koch brothers aren't right wing or may be honestly confused by the fact that you can have divisions within a category and yet the category remain valid.

[Populist_Prole]

6. Exactly. Economic views are a litmus test

Just because they take no position on social views that doesn't make them any less corporate/fascist.

Back when I was a center-right registered Republican I used to be called a "leftist" or "left winger" by hard line republicans because my economic views were too pro-working class for their tastes. The big thing was globalism or "free-trade" and just being against all that made me a bleeding heart liberal as far as they were concerned.

[Posteritatis]

3. Probably thinks they have to be both fiscal and social conservatives to be really right wing

Someone can have economic policies that make Rand look selfless, but to some people if they don't want mandatory school prayer or retroactive abortions for people who have abortions, they have to be liberals.

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. Yes he said that

He mentioned the Kochs have no position on social issues.

[NNN0LHI]

5. Wingnuts always assume everyone is as stupid as they are

[hootinholler]

7. Compare Aynn Rand to Robert Heinlein

Both are libertarian, One right one left.

[white_wolf]

8. Heinlein is a left libertarian?

I've always heard he was some sort of quasi-fascist, of course this is mainly based on Star Ship Troopers.

[Johnny Rico]

11. Starship Troopers was only one story out of dozens that Heinlein wrote.

In no other novel that he wrote did he portray a society such as that in Starship Troopers.

[Ikonoklast]

9. RAH never leaned Left.

He's a "I have a bigger gun than you so that makes me right" type of guy.

[Odin2005]

10. Heinlein wasn't s Left-Anything.

He was a curmudgeonly prick.

[Puregonzo1188]

12. I believe they oppose the Iraq War and support gay marriage. Plus when the one ran for VP

of the Libertarian Party in 1980 the Presidential candidate was a self-described low-tax liberal whose main issues was a nuclear freeze.


Of course, you wouldn't know it since they only put there money into causes that economically benefit them and aren't afraid to throw out their support for peace, gay rights, nuclear disarmament to support far-right borderline fascist candidates. Of course, they never turn the other way on the econ issues and support lefties who agree with them on gay rights or the war.

So no they're not rightwing. They're just selfish hypocrites who don't give a fuck about anything beyond their money.

[PETRUS]

13. One man's thoughts

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[OneTenthofOnePercent]

14. Not necessarily.

The political spectrum is not 1-dimensional (ie: left vs right, progressive vs conservative). Those terms merely describe the governing philosophy. There is also a 2nd dimensional component that describes the governing methodology... libertarian vs authoritarian.

Simply being libertarian (little-L) does not describe one's political beliefs, but rather the style of government in which they support.

[bowens43]

15. a libertarian is

nothing more then a right wing extremist sociopath.

[Wounded Bear]

16. I always considered Libertarians to be....

Republicans on steroids.

[MineralMan]

17. Some libertarians THINK they're not right-wingers.

They are, though. Society isn't their concern. Their own liberty is their concern, and that liberty means that if you don't agree, too bad.

That's the bottom line. Liberty for the libertarian. "You wan't liberty, too? Well, that's up to you, bub. I couldn't care less. Just get out of my way. Oh, by the way - it's going to cost you $5 to go down my road. Pay up or get out. Your house is on fire? Well, my fire company will put that out for you. You have a major credit card or, preferably, gold?" That's the attitude. Not very progressive.