Posts in "liberty movement"

By Matthew Burns at 2:30PM

Aug 1, 2011

Why the Debt Ceiling Suddenly Matters

I can only imagine how confusing the sudden “Debt Ceiling Crisis” must seem to everyday Americans. For the first time since almost anyone can remember, the almost yearly ritual of raising the federal government’s borrowing capacity actually seems to matter. President Obama, politicians, and so called “economists” are telling us that Congress must use a compromised, “balanced” approach in raising the debt ceiling.

We have been forewarned on what to expect if this does not happen. Yesterday, Credit Suisse predicted that the stock market would fall 30% if a deal wasn’t reached by the August 2nd deadline. Additionally, last Monday President Obama proclaimed that all functions of the federal government would shut down immediately in the event of debt default. Specifically mentioning a halt on Social Security checks, veterans’ benefits and all government contracts, Obama seems to be just as terrified as you and I should be.

Pandemonium!

Rioting in the streets!

Chaos!

Not so fast. Unfortunately, the raising of the federal debt has been a common occurrence since 1917, when congress passed the Second Liberty Bond Act to help with the government’s financing of the United States’ involvement in World War I.

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By Andrew Sharp at 10:58AM

Jun 10, 2011

Finding a Job in the Liberty Movement

Here are a few of the best resources for finding jobs within the liberty movement. YAL also has lots of strategic partners who have great opportunities for employment.

Know of a good resource we're missing? Leave it in the comments section!

Conservative Jobs

One of the best sites to start at is ConservativeJobs.com, a project of the Leadership Insitute, which allows you to upload your resume, and fill out a public policy questionnaire so that only organizations you agree with contact you. Conservative Jobs is constantly updated with some of the best opportunities for conservatives and libertarians. LI itself also has some great opportunities for employment.

State Policy Network

The State Policy Network has a number of great resources for those those interested in working in the public policy realm, including a job bank listing organizations that are hiring. There are many public policy organizations across the country, and most likely there is one close to you.

Institute for Humane Studies

IHS is one of the biggest libertarian organizations in the country, and many YAL members have worked for them. Check out their jobs postings site and be sure to check back often for updates.

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By Wesley Messamore at 12:55PM

Nov 8, 2010

How Ron Paul's "failed" 2008 bid culminated in a 2010 victory

In my most recent article at the California Independent Voter Network, I explore how Ron Paul's "failed" 2008 bid culminated in a 2010 electoral victory for his philosophy and growing political movement. It is so important to read and understand this! This is how electoral and political change happen in this country.

Also -- it currently has 49 "likes" (at the bottom of the article, you can vote like or dislike) so people are loving the analysis. Please add your "like" to draw attention to this coverage of Ron Paul's success.

Visit the article here.

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By Seth Mann at 5:59AM

May 18, 2010

International Liberty Movement: An Idea Whose Time Has Come

In the YAL "I Pledge " video, two young men, with English and Russian accents respectively, pledge to "spread the message of liberty throughout the world" and to "join the libertarian revolution in Russia." I have thought about these pledges more than the others. Which brings me to this recent article:

Is an international liberty movement an idea whose time has come?

Tea Partiers of the World, Unite!

by Nick Rizzuto

...

While international organization might have been deficient for the liberty movement historically, it appears that that is on the verge of changing. For the first time, there appears to be a growing international liberty movement, springing forth from the roots of our current American civic reawakening.

In recent months, inspired by what they are observing here in the states, Tea Party organizations have begun to rise in up the furthest corners of the world. While these organizations might have different concerns, ones that are specific to their particular nations, it is clear that each has formed around the same concepts: limited governance and individual liberty.

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By Matt Cockerill at 6:44AM

Feb 23, 2010

An Anti-State, Anti-Fed Thriller-Romance?

Here is the synopsis of "Silver Circle," a forthcoming, animated, liberty-themed film:

Picture a world with crisis-fueled cycles of government growth, inflation, nationalization, bailouts, and the corrosion of liberty. With each crisis, the Federal Reserve grows, yet remains below the public radar.

Not exactly farfetched, eh? But in the film's state-dominated world, the spirit of liberty still lives on in the the hearts of a few "free-market rebels who take on the Fed itself - mentally and tactically - and win."

I think this movie sounds cool, which is all to the good. The movement needs different mediums of intellectual and emotional inspiration than the typical nonfiction book or blog post. Yay to creativity and individuality!

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By Matt Cockerill at 7:07AM

Feb 20, 2010

Tolerance, the unifying virtue.

It's kinda...sorta...totally obvious that the Liberty Movement has the best-looking female activists. I thus wasn't surprised to see this piece on National Review's Dave Frum's blog -- aptly titled "Cutest Chicks go for Ron Paul" -- admitting as much. It was certainly apparent to anyone that so much glanced at "liberty row" here at CPAC 2010.

But even if the LOLA girls weren't pretty, their company would be far preferable to the "send druggies to jail, Muslims to the slaughterhouse" chicks. This is because they -- like all libertarians -- fight to uphold the unalienable rights of all individuals to self-determination. This virtue of tolerance, as Dr. Paul spoke about today, is why we liberty types get along with each other. Differences in "group" and lifestyle fade into the woodwork when neither the libertine libertarian nor the Christian libertarian is trying to impose his belief on the other.

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By Matt Cockerill at 7:11AM

Feb 16, 2010

A Rothbardian Youth Movement? Guilty as Charged.

As a CPAC weekend filled with pro-liberty events approaches, one has to be amazed at what we are about to witness. A libertarian youth movement has emerged, which while still vastly outnumbered by the statists, is far more powerful than its growing numbers. For we are true believers in a cohesive, unifying philosophy.

Our philosophy is, without a doubt, Rothbardian libertarianism. The consequentialist Friedmanite view that was popular over in the last two decades -- and remains so with beltway-based, "cosmo libertarian" respectables -- has been overwhelmed by natural-rights Rothbardians. We favor a platform of peace and liberty not because of cost-benefit analyses, but unshakable moral principles.

The beltway libertarians have long disdained the Rothbardian approach as impractical and divisive. William F. Buckley of National Review, who was sympathetic to certain libertarian ideas and thinkers, despised Rothbard's movement. He denounced his old friend in a scathing obituary in National Review, saying MNR's movement had "about as many disciples as David Koresh had in his little redoubt in Waco."

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By Matt Cockerill at 9:02PM

Jan 30, 2010

Assumptions make an A$$ out of you and me

Prior to one of my interviews, I failed to live up to the journalistic standards that the "real" media pretends to abide by. Specifically, I came into an interview with Cato Senior Scholar Tom Palmer several months back with negative preconceptions. I knew he had been a critic of Lew Rockwell and the Mises Institute and an advocate of military intervention in Afghanistan. I also felt cynical about Cato's commitment to libertarian principles.

In the last few months, I have gotten to know Dr. Palmer better, and realized my assumptions about him couldn't have been more wrong.

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By Matt Cockerill at 7:00AM

Jan 21, 2010

We must "walk the walk" by participating in politics -- but we'd better watch our step.

I emphatically agree with Murray Rothbard's view that all libertarians, even anarcho-capitalists, should enthusiastically jump into the political forray. So long as we support candidates who will move this country in the direction of peace and liberty, working for even incremental change is far better than being political hermit who remains a "purist" while making far less of a difference in the real world.

Still, we must remember that there is inevitable temptation and intrinsic evil that exists at the coal-black heart of the anti-individual, crudely collectivist state. This evil flows through the parasitical state's central hive in Washington D.C, where temptation of the sort few politicians can resist and none can completely avoid rules the day.

Setting politicians aside for a moment, think about your closest friends. Not the chicks and dudes you party with occasionally, but the individuals you truly care about and trust. They are flawed yet fundamentally good people. But even they give in to immoral temptations from time to time. An occasional moral failure is virtually impossible for non-saints to avoid.

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