Is 16 too young to be a fully fledged libertarian?

[Jordzy2j]

I'm a libertarian. An anarchist.

In layman's terms: I think that a government is a bad thing

Some people think I'm way too young to have to worry about the government. What do you think?

I'm not ganna give all my views and opinions in this one post if nobody is interested, so please leave a comment if interested and we can talk about it :)

Thanks

[sqishy]

I think it's good that you are thinking of these things before you have to be independent soon-ish (university, etc.), but waiting another 2 years to see if you keep the same views. I am not generally happy with governments, but I am not making any certain opinions, because I might change.

[Soulless]

It's always good to have an opinion, so long as you know that is is void of importance.

If you're an anarchist you definitely need to have a good argument for that, otherwise people will just brush you off as some cliche teen rebel.

[Trenton_]

i think you could wait and see how lazy you are because there are lines to vote unless you want to mail it so having no party is easier

[Korashk]

It's always good to have an opinion, so long as you know that is is void of importance.

If you're an anarchist you definitely need to have a good argument for that, otherwise people will just brush you off as some cliche teen rebel.
^This.

I've been an anarchist since I was 16 though. I'd recommend reading Robert Nozick's Anarchy, State, and Utopia if you haven't already. It;s probably one of the best books of anarchist philosophy.

[Kameraden]

Frankly, Anarchists have no place in politics -- for if you are an anarchist, you don't want a government, i.e politics.

[britishboy]

okay.... you get rid of the government, who leads?

[Jordzy2j]

I'll see if I can get a hold of it. If not, I'll get the e-book. Also, try out Lewrockwell.com

I'm also a big fan of Friedrich Nietzsche.

Thanks Soulless and Korashk

Thanks for all the reply's so far guys. It's about 00:25 so I should probably go to bed soon (No school tomorrow though)

I'll give more of an answer tomorrow
Cheers


-merged double post. -Emerald Dream

[Luminous]

No, I don't think it's too young. People of all ages are capable of thought and opinions.

[Sugaree]

No, I don't think it's too young. People of all ages are capable of thought and opinions.

Just because you're capable of holding an opinion doesn't mean you're capable of defending it.

[Sir Suomi]

It's never too young to develop your political opinion, as long as you make sure you keep your mind open in case you decide to change your mind. Personally, I strongly disagree with your choice, but I won't hold it against you.

[Korashk]

okay.... you get rid of the government, who leads?
Anybody who wants to. That's kinda the point.

[Jordzy2j]

Anybody who wants to. That's kinda the point.

Exactly. There will be police, but all private forces. We have them already, so why not expand on that? We'll have courtrooms and proper trials. You want an appeal? Go to a different court. It's private, so it's your choice

"But who will make the rules if no one's leading?!?!" Says xyzabc

Well, as cynical as it may seem, it's quite the opposite. A world free of government is no place for morons (not calling anyone a moron). There are "natural rules" eg. murder, theft, rape, etc. If a person does these things, they will be arrested and taken to court.

Why I say "no morons", is because a lot of people will not be able to come to terms with the fact that there are rules even if someone hasn't made them up. People who don't believe in natural laws will not thrive in a libertarian environment.


Hope that clears something up :)

[TheBigUnit]

would there be agencies making regulations? frankly i dont wanna be living in the early 1900s

as your original post i say sure go for it, we need more aware and active people like you, your opinions are subject to change and theres no problem with that

[britishboy]

Exactly. There will be police, but all private forces. We have them already, so why not expand on that? We'll have courtrooms and proper trials. You want an appeal? Go to a different court. It's private, so it's your choice

"But who will make the rules if no one's leading?!?!" Says xyzabc

Well, as cynical as it may seem, it's quite the opposite. A world free of government is no place for morons (not calling anyone a moron). There are "natural rules" eg. murder, theft, rape, etc. If a person does these things, they will be arrested and taken to court.

Why I say "no morons", is because a lot of people will not be able to come to terms with the fact that there are rules even if someone hasn't made them up. People who don't believe in natural laws will not thrive in a libertarian environment.


Hope that clears something up :)

so I can murder someone and go to a different court? or just bribe a judge?

[Harry Smith]

so I can murder someone and go to a different court? or just bribe a judge?

No, that's not at all what he said, he simply said that the courts would private based and in turn you wouldn't be subjected to one court. It's similar to how citizens can go to the EU court in Strasbourg

[ArcticEagle]

I never did like Anarchis/ibertarians.
I've always argued:
Who will protect us?
Who will control the economy?
Who will maintain law and Order?
Who will provide public services?
Without government there would be total Choas because of too much freedom, People will do what they wish and by that I mean, Theft, Murder, Assault, etc. without consequences because theres no government to maintain that order and there would be no courts, There would be nobody to lead and everything would be backwards. Most young people my age think its a great idea to have less government but they just can't understand why government exists in the first place.
Yes its young but if you have the right education which I currently am in the process of doing (I'm 16, been taking government classes since I was 13, history nerd, and active in politics) its fine but otherwise just try to educate yourself better develop arguments, look at the cons and see if it outweighs or compleatly makes its pros false.

Most arguments for Anarchy just dont make a lot of sense to me like the posts above, "Private courts, police, ANYONE CAN LEAD" um.... yeah that last one gets me most confused... Wouldn't that count as some sort of government and which can easily turn into some evil dictator? Private courts... "Private" So I guess I commited rape and I'll go bribe the judge who is just hired by some guy that owns a courthouse with "Natural Laws" or Private Police Force... I'll depend on my life on some guy that enforces Natural Laws with possibly little training and cheap equipment.

Now, What about regulations?
Enviromental control? Food and Drug control? Work safety, Security, education, etc.

In general, we would lose Public Schools, Public Hospitals, Government programs, there would be no economy, No judical system, no order, No protection, vulnerable to corruption, vulnerable to military invasions, lack of organization, just to name a few.

So safe to say, Anarchy would be choatic and thats a fact.

[britishboy]

No, that's not at all what he said, he simply said that the courts would private based and in turn you wouldn't be subjected to one court. It's similar to how citizens can go to the EU court in Strasbourg

ok but who sets the 'law'? a phyco will say killing is fine, a thief will say theft is fine and the general public will say it's not

so i'm assumed it will be a majority vote? which is what a democratic government is

I never did like Anarchis/ibertarians.
I've always argued:
Who will protect us?
Who will control the economy?
Who will maintain law and Order?
Who will provide public services?
Without government there would be total Choas because of too much freedom, People will do what they wish and by that I mean, Theft, Murder, Assault, etc. without consequences because theres no government to maintain that order and there would be no courts, There would be nobody to lead and everything would be backwards. Most young people my age think its a great idea to have less government but they just can't understand why government exists in the first place.
Yes its young but if you have the right education which I currently am in the process of doing (I'm 16, been taking government classes since I was 13, history nerd, and active in politics) its fine but otherwise just try to educate yourself better develop arguments, look at the cons and see if it outweighs or compleatly makes its pros false.

Most arguments for Anarchy just dont make a lot of sense to me like the posts above, "Private courts, police, ANYONE CAN LEAD" um.... yeah that last one gets me most confused... Wouldn't that count as some sort of government and which can easily turn into some evil dictator? Private courts... "Private" So I guess I commited rape and I'll go bribe the judge who is just hired by some guy that owns a courthouse with "Natural Laws" or Private Police Force... I'll depend on my life on some guy that enforces Natural Laws with possibly little training and cheap equipment.

Now, What about regulations?
Enviromental control? Food and Drug control? Work safety, Security, education, etc.

In general, we would lose Public Schools, Public Hospitals, Government programs, there would be no economy, No judical system, no order, No protection, vulnerable to corruption, vulnerable to military invasions, lack of organization, just to name a few.

So safe to say, Anarchy would be choatic and thats a fact.

couldnt agree more

[Harry Smith]

ok but who sets the 'law'? a phyco will say killing is fine, a thief will say theft is fine and the general public will say it's not

so i'm assumed it will be a majority vote? which is what a democratic government is




ahah you really don't understand it, I also love that you associate anarchy with violence when in fact anarchism lends its self to pacifism and anti-globalization.

Your being very narrow minded and general as usual.

The laws aren't set by a democratic vote at all, no country operates in an ancient greece esque way by letting the citizens vote for laws.

I'm not an expert on anarchy but the the idea is that it breaks down the idea of a bigger society and gives it to private companies.

[britishboy]

ahah you really don't understand it, I also love that you associate anarchy with violence when in fact anarchism lends its self to pacifism and anti-globalization.

Your being very narrow minded and general as usual.

The laws aren't set by a democratic vote at all, no country operates in an ancient greece esque way by letting the citizens vote for laws.

I'm not an expert on anarchy but the the idea is that it breaks down the idea of a bigger society and gives it to private companies.
again you seem personally offended and motivated against me? why I wonder? surely your not letting political opinions blind one's automatic class?

you admit you are no expert and then tell the forum how it is? certainly peculiar

while I love private markets and power in the private sector, a official leadership is needed to manage the country

[Harry Smith]

again you seem personally offended and motivated against me? why I wonder? surely your not letting political opinions blind one's automatic class?

you admit you are no expert and then tell the forum how it is? certainly peculiar

while I love private markets and power in the private sector, a official leadership is needed to manage the country

Automatic class? I don't really know what your going on about. I see you post something that was verging on incorrect, I quoted it and replied, its a debate forum I'm debating the idea about it.

I'm not an expert on computers but if someone pointed to a Mac and said it was a PC I would correct them.

[Luminous]

Just because you're capable of holding an opinion doesn't mean you're capable of defending it.

That's true- but it sounds to me like OP is capable of defending it. And it doesn't have to be something you need to defend either, if you just want to keep your opinions inside who am I to care? I was only capable of defending my own opinions within the last few months, since joining Virtualteen.