The difference between ’conservatives’ and ’libertarians,’ is really quite simple. There are a few differences between the two, and those differences may well spell the outcome of the election for President of the United States.
The main one seems to be conservatives’ desire to legislate morality. In this libertarian’s opinion, morality is a matter of opinion, upbringing, habit, genetics, and a few other things, but our sacred Constitution says nothing about ’morals,’ and I think conservatives turn off a lot of wonderful people by their continual moralizing and legislating what they believe should be other’s conduct.
I have never smoked, done drugs of any kind, or been drunk, but I am well aware of the extreme habit forming nicotine in cigarettes. Everyone knows that smoking does irreparable harm to the human body, but it is obvious that it is an extremely difficult habit to shake. The fact that American smokers have gone from over 50% to well under 25% is not because of laws, but public opinion, medical facts, and smokers’ desire to live longer. Laws prohibiting smoking, even on public streets, will be a disaster.
I really do believe that drug ingestion permanently warps the brain, and I wouldn’t dream of ever doing any kind of drugs, legal or not. My choice. The war on drugs has filled the prisons, and the drug king pins and cartels in Mexico, have destroyed Mexico’s law enforcement ability. Drugs can be taken in secret, and smuggled into every home or pocket in the world, and no drug law will stop it. Drugs should be legalized, and a person’s own morality should be the deciding factor, not unenforceable laws. Remember! Coca Cola got its name from the fact that it contained ’healthy’ cocaine in it initially. Coke decided that it was not healthy, and they removed it voluntarily, almost a hundred years ago. Just imagine drugs being legal, just like tobacco and alcohol. Half of law enforcement would be freed to find actual criminals!
Prohibition only made alcohol consumption larger, and facts prove that. That legislating some peoples’ ideas of ’morality,’ was a huge disaster, just like the drug wars are today. Why can’t we ever learn? The same is true with abortion. As a male, I couldn’t have an abortion, and as a Christian, I am against abortions in 99% of the cases, but abortion should not be part of a candidate’s opinions, or Supreme Court candidates’ opinions, and abortions should be left to the medical field, not legislation or electioneering.
Libertarians would have never gone to war in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, or Afghanistan. Conservatives seem to like wars, and I simply cannot understand why the military-industrial complex can’t be defeated. I am whole hearted in agreement with defense of our shores, but I am not interested in trying to forces the world to be ’democratic.’ Democracy is 51% controlling 49%, and that’s why America is a republic, not a democracy. Conservatives seem to be coming around to the libertarian anti foreign war beliefs. At least I hope so.
Conservatives and libertarians mostly agree that government is far too big, overpowering, and expensive. Unfortunately, it is the conservative desire to control people and legislate ’for their own good,’ that has caused government to grow so large. Conservative efforts to ’help’ people, rather than letting them help themselves of fail by themselves, has not only caused government to grow out of control, but has given us the underclass, who commit most of the crimes and live and eat at the expense of the taxpayers or dollar printing press.
I am registered Republican, but Republicans’ lack of libertarianism galls me to no end. If Republican candidates will skip the legislating morality issue in the campaigns, they will do a lot better!