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Path: utzoo!watmath!looking!brad
From: brad@looking.UUCP (Brad Templeton)
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: Libertarianism and Feminism are fully compatible
Message-ID: <309@looking.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 21-Jul-85 00:00:00 EDT
Article-I.D.: looking.309
Posted: Sun Jul 21 00:00:00 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 22-Jul-85 06:53:21 EDT
Organization: Looking Glass Software, Waterloo, Ont
Lines: 30

There has been recent talk in net.women along the lines of,
"What is all this Libertarian crud doing in this group."

It seems that people are suggesting that liberty and feminism are
antithetical.  I think exactly the reverse is true.

(BTW, I am not a member of the Libertarian party, nor do I think
their current platform can be implemented.  I do subscribe to the ideal
of individual liberty, though.)

The central concept behind the libertarian ideal is the elmination
of physical force from the commerce of the human race.  This means
let people go about their business free of force from others, and that
includes force from neighbours, corporations and governments.

Now, to my mind the origin of sexism lies in the fact that women are,
as a rule, of smaller stature and lesser strength than men.
This has caused the domination of women by men.  It is true that other
affects have appeared later, but the root of it all is the physical
difference.

So what better ideal than one that advocates the elimination of
physical strength as a tool to get one's desires?  The ideal of liberty
says the mind counts, not the body, for the mind is what is uniquely human.
It says that people shouldn't be able to force you to do things because
of their superior strength OR their superior numbers.

In a world where only the mind counts, sexism and racism can't last.
-- 
Brad Templeton, Looking Glass Software Ltd. - Waterloo, Ontario 519/884-7473