Bret Weinstein - The Case For Libertarianism

[@Liberty-Vault]

Do you agree with Bret Weinstein on the merits of libertarianism? For more liberty clips, subscribe to my channel and click the bell!

[@Hibernicus1968]

It's interesting that he has returned to the principles on which this nation was founded: maximization of individual liberty, _within the limits_ of a lawful, ordered, virtuous society. The founding fathers of this country, who despite their flaws, were one of the wisest collections of men ever assembled anywhere, tried to set up a government that would interfere in people's everyday lives as little as possible, but which still had enough power to attend to the necessary functions of government, and its proper role of maintaining law and order. Ever since the start of the "progressive" era in the early twentieth century, intellectuals in our civilization have gravitated more toward a model of society in which an educated elite constructs an ideal machine of government that creates something never seen before in the whole of human history: a just social order. It hinges on the difference between what Thomas Sowell calls the unconstrained vision of human nature versus what he calls the constrained vision. Basically, do you believe man is inherently good, and is perfectible, and we just have to construct the right society and the right institutions to draw forth this utopian potential, or do you believe that man is limited, flawed, shortsighted, selfish, prone to error, etc. and the best society needs to come to terms with this and maximize human happiness within the limits allowable by human nature? The founders of this country, influenced by the philosophy of John Locke, weighed much more toward the latter, and they drew up a plan for government that would leave people alone as much as possible. They thought that human happiness and potential was best realized by maximizing individual freedom -- but heaven on earth was off the table. By contrast, the French revolutionaries leaned much more toward the unconstrained vision, and they thought they could build the ideal society if they just put the right people in charge and gave them all the power they needed to accomplish it. The comparative wisdom of these two approaches can be seen in the fact that we in the United States are still living under the form of government our founding fathers set up 237 years ago, while France, during that same span of time, experienced a bloody Reign of Terror, a collapse into imperial autocracy, a restoration of the old monarchy, a second empire, and is now on its _fifth_ separate try at stable republican government.

[@QED_]

*"Virtuous society"* . . . is the part that I find to be problematic. What do you expect to happen if the majority of the country is NOT virtuous (?) I think I can make the case that we're pretty close to that now . . .

[@freesk8]

From where we are now, the size of government should be dramatically reduced. I'm pulling for Vivek and Musk to have great success with DOGE!

[@Daniel-lm4ex]

Just some examples of where Weinstein goes off course: 1) Roads. He holds there must be societal laws regulating which side of the road to drive on. That ignores that libertarian freedom entails maximizing private property rights. Hence owners of roads would make rules for the use of their roads. As they get paid by users of their roads it is incumbent upon the various owners to coordinate their road rules if they wish their roads to be profitable. Perhaps some curmudgeon would require differing rules but his roads would be effectively unused. Econ Prof. Walter Block has authored a 500 page treatise, The Privatization of Roads and Highways, detailing how the free market can do a much better job of providing this service than can government regulations, 2) His coal mining a scenic mountain top example. If such a spot is highly valued across the population those who wish to see it preserved can purchase the property and keep it virgin territory. For example, Ducks Unlimited has delivered 1 million acres of conservation across North America in 2024 alone thanks to more than a million supporters and partners including private landowners, hunters, corporations and other major donors. This achievement reflects a national surge to restore and protect wetland habitats. Weinstein falsely assume only airline regulations keep air travel safe. As with roads, airline owners would have every incentive to keep airlines safe. Weinstein is on the right path but unfortunately clings to coercion as he is not yet sufficiently knowledgeable about how libertarianism (especially Voluntaryiism - check it out) can resolve societal conflict.

[@QED_]

Sure, that all has to be said -- props. Nevertheless, I myself struggle to answer this question about Libertarianism: doesn't it depend too much on the ideal of a "Libertarian Man" in the same way that communism depends on the ideal of a "Socialist Man" (?) Each of these proposed ways of organizing society fails . . . if the vast majority of people don't embody the ideal.

[@freesk8]

I've been a big-L Libertarian since the early '90's. Over time, Brett will become more and more libertarian. Soon he will see the wisdom and practicality of privatizing the roads. :)

[@garageliftrunner]

Oh Brett....what happened to you dogg.

[@Hibernicus1968]

He got red-pilled by the insane, indoctrinated, leftist fanatics at Evergreen State College, who started a witch hunt for any heretics in their midst that dared deviate from leftist orthodoxy, that's what happened.