Markos Moulitsas, aka "Kos", posted about "The Libertarian Dem". Liberty-lovers should check it out, if only to see how badly the term "Libertarian" can be twisted.
Will Wilkinson has a good response. Excerpt:
It's pretty clear that Kos is pushing a program of positive liberty rather in opposition to the classical libertarian notion of liberty as non-interference. I fear that once you cash out precisely what Kos has in mind by ensuring that people aren't "unduly exploited by employers," whatever that means, or by "poverty prevention" and "social net programs," we'll discover something disappointingly like the Democratic party status quo. In which case, Kos will be simply declaring a pretty standard set of Democratic policies as "libertarian," in defiance of the normal understanding of the term. Is this a Machiavellian attempt at the dark Lakovian arts of re-framing? Or, more hopefully, a reflection of a sincere wish to court libertarians away from a lately abusive alliance with Republicans?I'd bet the answer to both Will's questions is yes. Serendipitously, Stephen Spruiell at the NR Media Blog dug up a Swedish magazine's interview with Kos, where he's quoted:
"I was in England recently, where they don't allow political ads on TV. It was a fantastic experience. It was so beautiful that I cried."Yes, the "Libertarian Dem" is also enthusiastically in favor of government regulation and supression of political speech. What else?
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