You absolutely MUST have a gander at the debate I’m having with Ontario (Canada)/Ohio (USA) libertarian Peter Jaworski, a Ph.D. student at Bowling Green University.
Peter is arguably Canada’s…perhaps North America’s most energized proponent of libertarianism. He has a campus radio show at Bowling Green, runs an annual “Liberty Summer Seminar” to promote libertarianism (now via his "Institute for Liberal Studies), is maximizing his influence in Canada’s now solely-web-based (and under new management) “Western Standard” magazine, etc.
If there was ever any doubt about the essential nature of libertarianism (as Peter Schwartz described it), this debate should eliminate the doubts. Peter is absolutely dismissive toward and derisive of Objectivism, Rand, Peikoff, Schwartz - and, notably, sympathetic with David Kelley and the Atlas Society. All the while, he asserts (in other places) that Objectivists are libertarians, and that he doesn’t understand why Objectivists don’t agree with that.
It is rare for libertarians to be so clear about their beliefs, and about their views on Objectivism. This is a debate to be saved on your hard drive and to be shared for some time to come. Do take the time to involve yourself in it.
Welcome to the forum! Your video on the Peikoff-Kelley debate is excellent, btw. I have recommended it countless times. I can see that that video is on the link too, so if anyone hasn’t watched that one yet, I’d say it’s a MUST for those who want to know more about that debate, other than reading the various articles themselves. It’s a very nice companion to them, I’d say.
I dont get it why he doesnt seem to get the point. I, who love to simplify things, have once again come up with an exaggerated example:
Let’s say there is an ideology called Anti-Affirmativeactionism :dough: that is a strategic movement with the aim to abolish affirmative action. It doesnt care why you are opposed to affirmative action, as long as you are against it. You can be
an anarchist who is against governments per se
you can be a “black pride”-zealot of the notion that affirmative action is demeaning to “black society” and that black people should have their own jobs where the races dont mix
you can be a neo-nazi of the notion that blacks are inferior to whites and should be “shipped back to africa” or used as slaves.
whatever reason you can come up with
It doesnt matter one bit which of these you belong, just as long as you oppose affirmative action.
I may be naive, but i would guess that at least the more rational libertarians would stay as far away from this movement as possible, but why cant they understand that no objectivist wants to have anything to do with the libertarian “movement”.