It has always been the fashion among Republicans I know for many of them to declare that, “no, I’m not a Republican, I’m really a Libertarian.” Talk show host Neal Boortz, in particular, has been trying for years to find cover under this blanket of “Libertarianism.”
My observation is that Libertarians, generally speaking, are really Republicans who for whatever reason don’t want to use that party label.
A poster at the Daily Kos website, addressing this precise topic, provides a useful guide list for how you can tell who the “real” Libertarians are:
Here’s a few warning signs.
10. If you think Ron Paul isn’t conservative enough and Fox News is fair and balanced, you might not be a Libertarian.
9. If you believe you have an inalienable right to attend Presidential townhalls brandishing a loaded assault rifle, but that arresting participants inside for wearing a pink shirt is an important public safety precaution, there’s a chance you’re dangerously unbalanced, but no chance you’re a Libertarian.
8. If you think the government should stay the hell out of Medicare, well, you have way, way bigger problems than figuring out if you’re really a Libertarian.
7. If you rank Anthonin Scalia and Roy Moore among the greatest Justices of all time, you may be bug f**k crazy, but you’re probably not a Libertarian.
6. You might not be a Libertarian if you think recreational drug use, prostitution, and gambling should be illegal because that’s what Jesus wants.
5. If you think the separation between church and state applies equally to all faiths except socially conservative Christian fundamentalism, you’re probably not a Libertarian.
4. You’re probably not a Libertarian if you believe the federal government should remove safety standards and clinical barriers for prescription and OTC medications while banning all embryonic stem cell research, somatic nuclear transfer, RU 486, HPV and cervical cancer vaccination, work on human/non human DNA combos, or Plan B emergency contraception.
3. If you think state execution of mentally retarded convicts is good policy but prosecuting Scott Roeder or disconnecting Terri Schiavo was an unforgivable sin, odds are you’re not really a Libertarian.
2. If you argue that cash for clunkers or any form of government healthcare is unconstitutional, but forced prayer or teaching old testament creationism in public schools is fine, you’re not even consistent, much less a Libertarian, and you may be Michele Bachmann.
And the number one sign: if you think government should stay the hell out of people’s private business — except when kidnapping citizens and rendering them to secret overseas torture prisons, snooping around the bedrooms of consenting adults, policing a woman’s uterus, or conducting warrantless wire taps, you are no Libertarian.
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