I’m delighted to learn that someone has violated my so-called intellectual property rights and posted a Japanese translation of part of Libertarianism Today on YouTube. There’s a version with English audio (a decent computer voice) and Japanese subtitles and a version with what I can only assume is Japanese audio and Japanese subtitles.
The translation is of one of my favorite parts of the book, on “Why Libertarians Oppose War.”
UPDATE: I’m told that the title of the Japanese-audio version is “Under Any Circumstances Government is Criminal Enterprise! Watch Out!”
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Austin has a new hardcore libertarian radio show, Live Free Austin with hosts Jason Rink and John Bush, on its “Big Talker” station, KXBT.
On last week’s show, they interviewed me about everything from Tea Parties to anarchy, and now the audio’s online:
Jacob Huebert on Live Free Austin 11.6.10
You can also check out their archives for an interview with Tom Woods, and you can hear their show live every Saturday from 3 to 4 p.m. Central.
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Today Antiwar.com has an excerpt from Libertarianism Today on why libertarians oppose war.
Here’s how it starts:
Libertarianism and war are not compatible. One reason why should be obvious: In war, governments commit legalized mass-murder. In modern warfare especially, war is not just waged among voluntary combatants, but kills, maims, and otherwise harms innocent people. Then, of course, wars must be funded through taxes, which are extracted from U.S. citizens by force – a form of legalized theft, as far as libertarians are concerned. And, historically, the U.S. has used conscription – legalized slavery – to force people to fight and die. In addition, an interventionist foreign policy makes civilians targets for retaliation, so governments indirectly cause more violence against their own people when they become involved in other countries’ affairs. Plus, war is always accompanied by many other new restrictions on liberty, many of which are sold as supposedly temporary wartime measures but then never go away.
Read the rest of the excerpt at Antiwar and the rest of the chapter, which has much more on war, in the book.
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Today LewRockwell.com offers another excerpt from my book. This one is about why government-funded school vouchers aren’t compatible with libertarianism.
I do understand why some libertarians like vouchers: they rightly feel bad for the actual, real-world children who are forced by law to attend horrible government schools, whose parents can’t afford other alternatives. If the government is going to coerce people, it’s understandable to want to minimize the harm done.
But as I argue in the book, vouchers would do more harm than good. Even if we can’t abolish government schools anytime soon, the best way to rescue as many kids as possible is through private, voluntary means.
Here are two more articles I’ve written on this topic:
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David Gordon’s review of Libertarianism Today for the Mises Review is now online. Here’s how it starts:
Jacob Huebert’s outstanding survey of libertarianism ranks as the best work of its kind since Murray Rothbard’s For a New Liberty. Huebert navigates successfully difficult waters. Many people, when they first hear of libertarianism, dismiss it as extreme and irresponsible. How can libertarians seriously propose to end public and compulsory education, repeal all regulations on drugs, and consign medicine entirely to the market? Huebert brings to bear a wealth of argument and historical evidence to show that, in these and other instances, libertarians have a convincing case.
Incidentally, people keep asking about the Kindle version of the book. Apparently there have been some technical difficulties on Amazon’s end, but the publisher assures me that it’s coming very soon. Meanwhile, Amazon, which was sold out for a while, now has hardback copies in stock for immediate shipment, and you can get the paperback at Mises.org.
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Today LewRockwell.com has an excerpt from Libertarianism Today on why libertarians shouldn’t revere Ronald Reagan.
