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From: bprice@bmcg.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.philosophy
Subject: Re: Libertarianism
Message-ID: <1111@bmcg.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 20-Jul-84 17:58:50 EDT
Article-I.D.: bmcg.1111
Posted: Fri Jul 20 17:58:50 1984
Date-Received: Sun, 22-Jul-84 06:10:33 EDT
References: qusavx.192, <2894@ecsvax.UUCP>
Organization: Burroughs Corporation, San Diego
Lines: 21

>I agree with the author of this article.  I think Libertarians have the right
>idea, if they could only get away from the loony notion that only the
>government constitutes a threat to liberty.  Their obsession with government
>is something like the Conservative obsession with sex (maybe this is why
>conservatives look less 'lean and hungry' than Libertarians :-) ??
>
>D Gary Grady

The Libertarian notion is more completely stated as  "The Government's
monopoly on the use of force constitutes the threat to liberty."  The
Libertarian 'prescriptions' for this threat amount to severe restrictions on
the government's right to use its monopoly against people.  The current lack of
effective restriction makes each of us terribly vulnerable to every little
political movement that can coopt a piece of government and use the
government's force to further the movement's ends.

Given that the government has that monopoly on force, is there any other real
threat to liberty?
-- 
--Bill Price    uucp:   {decvax!ucbvax  philabs}!sdcsvax!bmcg!bprice
                arpa:?  sdcsvax!bmcg!bprice@nosc