By Jack Parkos | United States

All over social media, you will see people posting “new year, new me.” While people are setting resolutions for a better year, libertarians should also set goals for 2019. The Libertarian Party is failing and has gotten little done. Clearly, something must change. New strategies must be tried, new allies must be considered, all in an effort to gain a more libertarian society. Ideally, we would want to obtain a truly libertarian society, where interactions are voluntary, private property is respected, the market is freed, etc.. But realistically that will not happen for a long time. So, what should we work towards in 2019?

10 Policy Goals for 2019

What we should work for is making society more libertarian, with decentralization, more respect to property owners, and voluntarism (the principle of respecting voluntary actions). We also should maintain the necessary culture for a libertarian social order. Below are some points on what to try to obtain in 2019.

Decentralization of the Government- The federal government has very much exceeded the limits set to it in the Constitution. Originally, the states handled many of the issues. Pragmatically, libertarians should want to decentralize the state as much as possible while it holds its monopoly on power. The more local the state, the more voluntary and less tyrannical it becomes. In 2019, libertarians should support propositions that aim to secure states rights against the expanding power of the federal government. Bring Home the Troops, End the Wars- War-hawkish foreign policy has gone on long enough. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost the taxpayers trillions of dollars. What’s worse is the humanitarian impact of these wars. Death tolls for these wars are in the thousands for American troops, and for what? The region has only become more destabilized. Moreover, the United States is backing the Saudis as they reign terror on the innocent people of Yemen. The moves by Trump to pull the troops out of Syria and Afghanistan are good and should be encouraged. Stop Mass Immigration- These wars have caused mass destabilization of the Middle Eastern region, creating a mass migration to the west. Europe has already seen the downsides to mass migration; an increase in violent crimes, political instability, and the welfare state. This is something libertarians must stop from happening in America. Securing the borders is not “anti-libertarian” as left-libertarians will claim. Forced immigration unto the people is statism. Ideally, borders would be private property. But while the state has a monopoly on borders, they should be protected as such. Take Down the Fed- Trump has encouraged an audit on the Federal Reserve and has recently been attacking it. Libertarians must support all efforts by Trump against the Federal Reserve. An audit of the fed is a good step in the direction of the ultimate goal: Ending the federal reserve. Furthermore, banking should be as decentralized as possible, and any policy doing this should be pushed and encouraged. Defeat the Left and Stop the Mobs- To quote Hans Hermann Hoppe:

“Tacitly supported and indirectly funded by the ruling elites, this self-described mob of “social justice warriors” has taken upon itself the task of escalating the fight against “white privilege” through deliberate acts of terror directed against anyone and anything deemed “racist,” “right-wing,” “fascist,” “reactionary,” “incorrigible” or “unreconstructed.” Such “enemies of progress” are physically assaulted by the “anti-fascist” mob, their cars are burnt down, their properties vandalized, and their employers threatened to dismiss them and ruin their careers – all the while the police are ordered by the powers that be to “stand down” and not to investigate the crimes committed or prosecute and punish the criminals. In view of this outrage, public anger must be aroused and there must be clamoring, far and wide, for the police to be unleashed and this mob be beaten into submission.”

Whenever a right-leaning speaker wants to speak at a college, mobs form and destroy property to prevent them from using free speech. Meanwhile, the cops tell the peaceful speaker he must leave. These actions must be condemned by libertarians. Leftwing mobs must be stopped. Furthermore, left-wing control of the media and culture is something libertarians should take on, as they promote forced equity, socialism, and more state infringements on liberty. The cultural Marxists must be stopped.

6. Promote Lassiez-Faire Capitalism- Whether through low taxes, deregulation, or free trade, all policies that move us towards laissez-faire capitalism must be a top priority for libertarians this year. Supporting any political candidate or political action that frees the economy. Moreover, whichever major candidate is more laissez-faire (typically the Republican) should be the one voted for unless they promote war. Laissez-Faire capitalism is one of the key components of libertarianism.

7. Reform the Libertarian Party- The libertarian ideology promotes free markets, private property, and non-violence. The Libertarian Party has become a party of degeneracy, promoting hedonistic lifestyles, and leftist talking points. The party even has a “socialist caucus”. Libertarianism has falsely been labeled as “socially liberal and fiscally conservative”. While we are against the state using a monopoly to enforce laws against sexual liberation or drugs, the party should not be promoting it like it currently does. The party should be reformed to one that promotes Austrian economics and liberty. If this cannot be done, libertarians may give up on the party as it is no longer a tool to advance liberty.

8. Expose Elites and the “Deep State”- The elites that control the world (politicians, the media, the so-called “intellects”), must be exposed as the frauds and crooks they are. Many conspiracies arise about the “Deep State”, and we must work to spread the truth about them. Big global bureaucratic organizations should be weakened and ultimately destroyed. We must expose those who profit from the wars and the military industrial complex. Small media sites should be promoted to combat corporate media. All corruption in D.C should be exposed. Also, so-called “intellects” should be challenged as they push statist and leftist propaganda.

9. Fight in the Culture War- True American culture is based on liberty, family values, and western civilization. The idea was that different cultures could come together but would agree on certain values. Recently, however, there has been a war on American culture. The nuclear family has been under attack since feminists pushed sexual “liberation” which has only lead to an increase in the welfare state. Libertarians should embrace traditional values not with state violence, but rather, in the fight of the culture war.

10. Stop the War on Drugs- The War on Drugs was a massive failure. It did not accomplish its goal to limit drug use, rather it pushed the problem more underground and increasing the power of drug cartels. This caused mass increases in violent crime. What’s worse is the violation of civil liberties in the process, SWAT teams raiding people’s houses and violent police interactions have become far more common. Moreover, it has also cost a lot of money to the tax payer. The war on drugs must be ended or deceased. Policies to decriminalize drugs, loosen drug laws, or leave it to the states must be encouraged.

Taking everything into consideration, it can be concluded that these are reasonable goals to pursue in 2019. Though it will not all solve issues, it will be a good step in the right direction. All these goals are consistent with libertarianism and can help us make a more libertarian society.

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