Final Libertarian question for now?

[aethelbert35]

So from my conversations with libertarians I've gleaned the following bits about a libertarian society:

Cannibalism without murder, drug use, prostitution, indentured servitude, child labor and contractual slavery would all be allowed

There would be no public services other than some police.

There would be no laws or social/state incentives for clean air or water

Poor people would be allowed to starve, or die without medical care if they lacked money

etc etc

How does ANY of this sound like a good idea?

[fionnbharr]

So from my conversations with libertarians I've gleaned the following bits about a libertarian society:

Cannibalism without murder, drug use, prostitution, indentured servitude, child labor and contractual slavery would all be allowed

There would be no public services other than some police.

There would be no laws or social/state incentives for clean air or water

Poor people would be allowed to starve, or die without medical care if they lacked money

etc etc

How does ANY of this sound like a good idea?

Your knowledge of Libertarianism is pathetic.

Americans don't let Americans starve. Government is just another vehicle of corruption.

[bernd]

While somewhat exaggerated, your pretty much on the mark. They claim that to get a free market and keep it free we must give up anything that resembles a civilized society. Not in that way of course, but the ideology will lead to a lawless society. Most who claim to be a part of this murky clan have never really read about their agenda and think its about free markets and smaller government. Its that, and a whole lot more (mostly bad stuff).

[demarco]

The best way to explain a libertarian is that they don't differentiate between an economic issue and a social issue. In our modern debate, conservatives are "socially" pro-government and "economically" anti-government, while liberals are the opposite. A conservative looks at the modern welfare state and sees it as too big and too burdensome, but sees laws banning "sodomy," prostitution, polygamy, abortion, and says "that's normal."

[eoforwic]

All that you mention happens now so what is your point? Think about this: Even in a libertarian society there would be nothing to stop people from working together or having charity.
When the Jesse James gang tried to rob the bank in North field Minnesota it was the towns business men that shot them to death and ran them off not police. When we were hard up thirty years ago it was my neighbors who brought us a box of groceries not the government. Our local Hospital takes anyone and always has if they are sick and just charges those who can pay a bit more along with donations by benefactors to make the books balance.
What is untrue in your statement is the thinking that all good in humanity would be non existent if it were not legislated by government.

[curney13]

Cannibalism is fine, that's to say, if two parties agree to it somehow. But this is so far from the norm that it's really out of the way of any worthy argumentation. It's almost a red herring, and it's really not even worth concern.

Right, no public services because the market does it better by responding to demand, and does business at the highest quality and lowest price due to competition.

Clean air and water can be taken care of by courts. For example, if a farmer sprays pesticides that makes his neighbor's water undrinkable, the neighbor can either persuade his farmer friend to stop using the pesticide or else take him to court because he's damaging his property.

This poor people starving bit is a real straw man, it's rather tiring to hear. With a free market there will be far less unemployment, productivity will be extremely high, and costs will be very low. Wages will be higher so that companies can retain workers (as oppose to losing that worker to another company), and food and medical care will be at a lowest price possible in order to attract the most amount of consumers so, in turn, the companies can make the most amount of money. So goes competition.

Medical care though is rightly an area of contention, but it's so misunderstood by everyone that it's kind of sad. The reason prices are so high is because drug companies, insurance companies (etc) are lobbying government for handouts, and the government obliges. Shrink government and lobbying stops, handouts and subsidies stop, and the healthcare companies must be subject to the forces of the market. The thing is that when government helps out a firm or industry, they're no longer subject to competition and can essentially charge whatever they want, which is why you see high prices. Let these industries be a part of the free market and you'll see prices fall and quality of the good or service increase.

On top of all this, you will have ALL of your money to spend how you wish. you don't have the government spending your money for you inefficiently and on things you don't even want to spend your money on. (For example, you probably don't want to be subsidizing the oil industry, do you? Too bad, says the government. And while we're on that, as an example of inefficiency of big government: The government spends your money to subsidize the oil industry, then spends your money telling you to "go green". Another: The government spends taxpayer money to subsidize the tobacco industry, then uses some more taxpayer money to encourage you not to smoke. Brilliant, eh? In a free market, libertarian society, the oil and tobacco industries would be allowed to shrink to their rightful size, and if you don't want to smoke then don't buy cigarettes. But another key point is that if others want to smoke, it's their right to and no one should use force to tell them not to.)