Subject:
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Libertarian Propaganda
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.off-topic.debate
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Date:
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Wed, 13 Jun 2001 04:29:57 GMT
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Viewed:
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506 times
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There isn't enough to debate around here these days ( grin) so here's some
fodder. Rather than excerpting, here it is in its entireity. Note in
particular point #3, which I think may be the most significant of the 5,
although I'm rather fond of #1 as well
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NEWS FROM THE LIBERTARIAN PARTY
2600 Virginia Avenue, NW, Suite 100
Washington DC 20037
World Wide Web: http://www.LP.org
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For release: June 12, 2001
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For additional information:
George Getz, Press Secretary
Phone: (202) 333-0008 Ext. 222
E-Mail: pressreleases@hq.LP.org
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What now? Five suggestions to
prevent the next Timothy McVeigh
WASHINGTON, DC -- Now that Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh has
been executed, there are specific actions the government should
immediately take to prevent such a horrific act of domestic terrorism
from ever happening again, Libertarians say.
"Of course, no one can guarantee that another Timothy McVeigh-style
psychopath won't try to murder scores of innocent people," said Steve
Dasbach, Libertarian Party national director. "However, Libertarians
have five concrete suggestions for the government, each of which would
reduce the chance of such a crime being repeated."
On Monday morning, McVeigh was executed by lethal injection at a
federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana, for his role in the 1995
bombing that killed 168 people in a federal building in Oklahoma City.
Now, the government should act quickly to try to change the political
climate that helped spawn a Timothy McVeigh, said Dasbach. Such reforms
could include:
(1) Prosecute government officials who commit crimes.
"McVeigh said he blew up the building in Oklahoma City to protest the
federal government's actions in Waco -- and he was quickly apprehended,
tried, and punished for his crime," noted Dasbach. "That was proper,
even if you might disagree with the morality of the death sentence.
"However, not a single FBI or BATF agent was arrested for their role
in the fiery deaths of 86 people at the Branch Davidian compound in
Waco, Texas. There should not be one standard of justice for ordinary
Americans, and another for government officials. Until that injustice
is eliminated, many Americans will continue to view their government
with suspicion, fear, and bitterness."
(2) Embrace an open, vibrant political system.
"People tend to turn to violence only when they feel they have no
other way to be heard," said Dasbach. "It is the government's
responsibility, then, to make sure that political discussion is not
restricted, regulated, or suppressed.
"When Americans feel they have a role in the political system, they
will work through the political system to make productive changes. When
that avenue is blocked -- either by restrictive ballot access laws,
legal curbs on political speech, exclusion from debates, or by
attempting to discredit unpopular political speech -- the Timothy
McVeighs of the world turn to violence.
"That's why robust political debate -- especially about the abuse of
government power -- is a healthy way to change the system. And that's
why stifling such debate is downright dangerous."
(3) Reject violence on principle.
"Over the past 20 years, the United States government has intervened
militarily in Iraq, Yugoslavia, Haiti, Panama, Afghanistan, Bosnia,
Kosovo, and other nations," said Dasbach. "In each case, these
military actions resulted in innocent civilians being killed, and were
done without the benefit of a formal declaration of war.
"The message of these actions is simple: It's proper to use violence
to achieve political goals. That's a message the government should not
send. Instead, a commitment to nonviolence should start at the top.
"Unless the security of the United States is directly threatened, the
U.S. government should not bomb, invade, or drop missiles on people in
other nations. Violence breeds violence, and it's time for our
government to lead by example and stop the bloodshed."
(4) Repeal the Omnibus Anti-Terrorism Act of 1996.
"This legislation, rushed through Congress after the Oklahoma City
bombing, grants the president arbitrary power to declare individuals
'terrorists,' authorizes the use of secret evidence, and reverses the
presumption of innocence for suspects," said Dasbach. "Repealing this
law would expand freedom without hindering the ability to catch real
criminals.
"The freedoms recognized under the Bill of Rights are our strongest
bulwark against terrorism. Security measures that infringe on those
freedoms will inevitably lead to abuse, ultimately making us less
secure in our lives and property."
(5) Reduce the size and power of the federal government.
"No, we're not saying that the growing power of the federal government
justifies what Timothy McVeigh did," said Dasbach. "But the fact is,
millions of Americans view their own government with suspicion and
distrust.
"Americans see a government that can recklessly seize our property
under asset forfeiture, eminent domain, or environmental laws; that can
detain us at roadblocks for not wearing a seatbelt; that forces banks
to spy on their own customers; that shoots innocent people dead in the
name of the War on Drugs; that can secretly read our e-mail; that
allows the IRS to seize our bank accounts; and that can violate our
civil liberties in a thousand different ways.
"A government that was limited to its Constitutionally defined role
would be smaller, less intrusive, and less threatening. It would be a
government that honors fundamental American liberties, instead of
undermining them. And it would be a government that gives Americans
little reason to view it with apprehension."
Those five suggestions have something in common, said Dasbach: They
would all change the political climate in a positive way -- and make
future Timothy McVeighs less likely.
"We can never bring back the men, women, and children who were killed
in Oklahoma City," he said. "But by using this tragedy to honor and
reaffirm our nation's fundamental liberties, we can help make sure that
the 168 people who died in Oklahoma City did not die in vain. It would
be America's way of standing up and saying: 'Never again.' "
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Message has 6 Replies:
 | | Re: Libertarian Propaganda
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| (...) I imagine Larry getting a new computer peripherial..."The Trouble Stirring Up USB 2.0 Ladle and Firewire (800MBps) Pot To Stir ™"...he hooks it up and thinks to himself ..ooOO{Now, where did I put that last LP e-mail?} 8?) (...) If you do (...) (23 years ago, 13-Jun-01, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
| | | Re: Libertarian SPAM (Propaganda)
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| From my UK perspective, perhaps the best way to “prevent the next Timothy McVeigh” is to crack down on the over-armed libertarian (although some are also anti-semitic /white supremacists) "militiamen" compounds which populate hilltops in places (...) (23 years ago, 13-Jun-01, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
| | | Re: Libertarian Propaganda
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| (...) It really annoys me when people clamor for a "smaller government." The first things to get cut are usually civil services, government publications, and the like. As an example, many years ago, the Coast Pilot division had some 25 or more (...) (23 years ago, 13-Jun-01, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
| | | Re: Libertarian Propaganda
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| (...) As a card-carrying Libertarian, the foreign policy plank is probably the part of the platform I disagree with the most. Regardless of what domestic policies we persue (libertarian ones, I hope), our national interest doesn't change. Now, I (...) (23 years ago, 13-Jun-01, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
| | | Re: Libertarian Propaganda
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| (...) A good point with a debatable example. (...) Another good point, but it misses to a degree. People turn to violence when they feel disenfranchised for whatever reason - the Latasha Harlin/Rodney King one-two punch resulted in riots in Los (...) (23 years ago, 13-Jun-01, to lugnet.off-topic.debate)
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