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Libertarian Platform

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    Libertarian Platform

    PREAMBLE

    As Libertarians, we seek a world of liberty; a world in
    which all individuals are sovereign over their own
    lives and no one is forced to sacrifice his or her
    values for the benefit of others.


    We believe that respect for individual rights is the
    essential precondition for a free and prosperous
    world, that force and fraud must be banished from
    human relationships, and that only through freedom
    can peace and prosperity be realized.


    Consequently, we defend each person's right to
    engage in any activity that is peaceful and honest,
    and welcome the diversity that freedom brings. The
    world we seek to build is one where individuals are
    free to follow their own dreams in their own ways,
    without interference from government or any
    authoritarian power.


    In the following pages we have set forth our basic
    principles and enumerated various policy stands
    derived from those principles.


    These specific policies are not our goal, however. Our
    goal is nothing more nor less than a world set free in
    our lifetime, and it is to this end that we take these
    stands.




    STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES

    We, the members of the Libertarian Party, challenge
    the cult of the omnipotent state and defend the rights
    of the individual.


    We hold that all individuals have the right to exercise
    sole dominion over their own lives, and have the right
    to live in whatever manner they choose, so long as
    they do not forcibly interfere with the equal right of
    others to live in whatever manner they choose.




    Governments throughout history have regularly
    operated on the opposite principle, that the State has
    the right to dispose of the lives of individuals and the
    fruits of their labor. Even within the United States, all
    political parties other than our own grant to
    government the right to regulate the lives of
    individuals and seize the fruits of their labor without
    their consent.


    We, on the contrary, deny the right of any
    government to do these things, and hold that where
    governments exist, they must not violate the rights of
    any individual: namely, (1) the right to life --
    accordingly we support the prohibition of the
    initiation of physical force against others; (2) the right
    to liberty of speech and action -- accordingly we
    oppose all attempts by government to abridge the
    freedom of speech and press, as well as government
    censorship in any form; and (3) the right to property -
    - accordingly we oppose all government interference
    with private property, such as confiscation,
    nationalization, and eminent domain, and support the
    prohibition of robbery, trespass, fraud, and
    misrepresentation.


    Since governments, when instituted, must not violate
    individual rights, we oppose all interference by
    government in the areas of voluntary and contractual
    relations among individuals. People should not be
    forced to sacrifice their lives and property for the
    benefit of others. They should be left free by
    government to deal with one another as free traders;
    and the resultant economic system, the only one
    compatible with the protection of individual rights, is
    the free market.


    1.0 Personal Liberty

    Individuals should be free to make choices for
    themselves and to accept responsibility for the
    consequences of the choices they make. No
    individual, group, or government may initiate force
    against any other individual, group, or government.
    Our support of an individual's right to make choices
    in life does not mean that we necessarily approve or
    disapprove of those choices.

    1.1 Expression and Communication

    We support full freedom of expression and oppose
    government censorship, regulation or control of
    communications media and technology. We favor the
    freedom to engage in or abstain from any religious
    activities that do not violate the rights of others. We
    oppose government actions which either aid or attack
    any religion.

    1.2 Personal Privacy

    Libertarians support the rights recognized by the
    Fourth Amendment to be secure in our persons,
    homes, and property. Protection from unreasonable
    search and seizure should include records held by
    third parties, such as email, medical, and library
    records. Only actions that infringe on the rights of
    others can properly be termed crimes. We favor the
    repeal of all laws creating “crimes” without victims,
    such as the use of drugs for medicinal or recreational
    purposes.



    1.3 Personal Relationships

    Sexual orientation, preference, gender, or gender
    identity should have no impact on the government's
    treatment of individuals, such as in current marriage,
    child custody, adoption, immigration or military
    service laws. Government does not have the authority
    to define, license or restrict personal relationships.
    Consenting adults should be free to choose their own
    sexual practices and personal relationships.

    1.4 Abortion

    Recognizing that abortion is a sensitive issue and that
    people can hold good-faith views on all sides, we
    believe that government should be kept out of the
    matter, leaving the question to each person for their
    conscientious consideration.

    1.5 Crime and Justice

    Government exists to protect the rights of every
    individual including life, liberty and property.
    Criminal laws should be limited to violation of the
    rights of others through force or fraud, or deliberate
    actions that place others involuntarily at significant
    risk of harm. Individuals retain the right to voluntarily
    assume risk of harm to themselves. We support
    restitution to the victim to the fullest degree possible
    at the expense of the criminal or the negligent
    wrongdoer. We oppose reduction of constitutional
    safeguards of the rights of the criminally accused.
    The rights of due process, a speedy trial, legal
    counsel, trial by jury, and the legal presumption of
    innocence until proven guilty, must not be denied. We
    assert the common-law right of juries to judge not
    only the facts but also the justice of the law.

    1.6 Self-Defense

    The only legitimate use of force is in defense of
    individual rights — life, liberty, and justly acquired
    property — against aggression. This right inheres in
    the individual, who may agree to be aided by any
    other individual or group. We affirm the individual
    right recognized by the Second Amendment to keep
    and bear arms, and oppose the prosecution of
    individuals for exercising their rights of self-defense.
    We oppose all laws at any level of government
    requiring registration of, or restricting, the
    ownership, manufacture, or transfer or sale of
    firearms or ammunition.



    2.0 Economic Liberty

    Libertarians want all members of society to have
    abundant opportunities to achieve economic success.
    A free and competitive market allocates resources in
    the most efficient manner. Each person has the right
    to offer goods and services to others on the free
    market. The only proper role of government in the
    economic realm is to protect property rights,
    adjudicate disputes, and provide a legal framework in
    which voluntary trade is protected. All efforts by
    government to redistribute wealth, or to control or
    manage trade, are improper in a free society.

    2.1 Property and Contract

    Property rights are entitled to the same protection as
    all other human rights. The owners of property have
    the full right to control, use, dispose of, or in any
    manner enjoy, their property without interference,
    until and unless the exercise of their control infringes
    the valid rights of others. We oppose all controls on
    wages, prices, rents, profits, production, and interest
    rates. We advocate the repeal of all laws banning or
    restricting the advertising of prices, products, or
    services. We oppose all violations of the right to
    private property, liberty of contract, and freedom of
    trade. The right to trade includes the right not to
    trade — for any reasons whatsoever. Where property,
    including land, has been taken from its rightful
    owners by the government or private action in
    violation of individual rights, we favor restitution to
    the rightful owners.

    2.2 Environment

    We support a clean and healthy environment and
    sensible use of our natural resources. Private
    landowners and conservation groups have a vested
    interest in maintaining natural resources. Pollution
    and misuse of resources cause damage to our
    ecosystem. Governments, unlike private businesses,
    are unaccountable for such damage done to our
    environment and have a terrible track record when it
    comes to environmental protection. Protecting the
    environment requires a clear definition and
    enforcement of individual rights in resources like
    land, water, air, and wildlife. Free markets and
    property rights stimulate the technological
    innovations and behavioral changes required to
    protect our environment and ecosystems. We realize
    that our planet's climate is constantly changing, but
    environmental advocates and social pressure are the
    most effective means of changing public behavior.

    2.3 Energy and Resources

    While energy is needed to fuel a modern society,
    government should not be subsidizing any particular
    form of energy. We oppose all government control of
    energy pricing, allocation, and production.

    2.4 Government Finance and Spending

    All persons are entitled to keep the fruits of their
    labor. We call for the repeal of the income tax, the
    abolishment of the Internal Revenue Service and all
    federal programs and services not required under the
    U.S. Constitution. We oppose any legal requirements
    forcing employers to serve as tax collectors.
    Government should not incur debt, which burdens
    future generations without their consent. We support
    the passage of a "Balanced Budget Amendment" to
    the U.S. Constitution, provided that the budget is
    balanced exclusively by cutting expenditures, and not
    by raising taxes.

    2.5 Money and Financial Markets

    We favor free-market banking, with unrestricted
    competition among banks and depository institutions
    of all types. Individuals engaged in voluntary
    exchange should be free to use as money any
    mutually agreeable commodity or item. We support a
    halt to inflationary monetary policies and
    unconstitutional legal tender laws.

    2.6 Monopolies and Corporations

    We defend the right of individuals to form
    corporations, cooperatives and other types of
    companies based on voluntary association. We seek
    to divest government of all functions that can be
    provided by non-governmental organizations or
    private individuals. We oppose government subsidies
    to business, labor, or any other special interest.
    Industries should be governed by free markets.

    2.7 Labor Markets

    We support repeal of all laws which impede the ability
    of any person to find employment. We oppose
    government-fostered forced retirement. We support
    the right of free persons to associate or not associate
    in labor unions, and an employer should have the
    right to recognize or refuse to recognize a union. We
    oppose government interference in bargaining, such
    as compulsory arbitration or imposing an obligation
    to bargain.

    2.8 Education

    Education is best provided by the free market,
    achieving greater quality, accountability and
    efficiency with more diversity of choice. Recognizing
    that the education of children is a parental
    responsibility, we would restore authority to parents
    to determine the education of their children, without
    interference from government. Parents should have
    control of and responsibility for all funds expended
    for their children's education.


    2.9 Health Care

    We favor restoring and reviving a free market health
    care system. We recognize the freedom of individuals
    to determine the level of health insurance they want
    (if any), the level of health care they want, the care
    providers they want, the medicines and treatments
    they will use and all other aspects of their medical
    care, including end-of-life decisions. People should
    be free to purchase health insurance across state
    lines.

    2.10 Retirement and Income Security

    Retirement planning is the responsibility of the
    individual, not the government. Libertarians would
    phase out the current government-sponsored Social
    Security system and transition to a private voluntary
    system. The proper and most effective source of help
    for the poor is the voluntary efforts of private groups
    and individuals. We believe members of society will
    become more charitable and civil society will be
    strengthened as government reduces its activity in
    this realm.



    3.0 Securing Liberty

    The protection of individual rights is the only proper
    purpose of government. Government is
    constitutionally limited so as to prevent the
    infringement of individual rights by the government
    itself. The principle of non-initiation of force should
    guide the relationships between governments.



    3.1 National Defense

    We support the maintenance of a sufficient military to
    defend the United States against aggression. The
    United States should both avoid entangling alliances
    and abandon its attempts to act as policeman for the
    world. We oppose any form of compulsory national
    service.

    3.2 Internal Security and Individual Rights

    The defense of the country requires that we have
    adequate intelligence to detect and to counter threats
    to domestic security. This requirement must not take
    priority over maintaining the civil liberties of our
    citizens. The Constitution and Bill of Rights shall not
    be suspended even during time of war. Intelligence
    agencies that legitimately seek to preserve the
    security of the nation must be subject to oversight
    and transparency. We oppose the government's use of
    secret classifications to keep from the public
    information that it should have, especially that which
    shows that the government has violated the law.

    3.3 International Affairs

    American foreign policy should seek an America at
    peace with the world. Our foreign policy should
    emphasize defense against attack from abroad and
    enhance the likelihood of peace by avoiding foreign
    entanglements. We would end the current U.S.
    government policy of foreign intervention, including
    military and economic aid. We recognize the right of
    all people to resist tyranny and defend themselves
    and their rights. We condemn the use of force, and
    especially the use of terrorism, against the innocent,
    regardless of whether such acts are committed by
    governments or by political or revolutionary groups.

    3.4 Free Trade and Migration

    We support the removal of governmental
    impediments to free trade. Political freedom and
    escape from tyranny demand that individuals not be
    unreasonably constrained by government in the
    crossing of political boundaries. Economic freedom
    demands the unrestricted movement of human as
    well as financial capital across national borders.
    However, we support control over the entry into our
    country of foreign nationals who pose a credible
    threat to security, health or property.
    3.5 Rights and Discrimination

    Libertarians embrace the concept that all people are
    born with certain inherent rights. We reject the idea
    that a natural right can ever impose an obligation
    upon others to fulfill that "right." We condemn bigotry
    as irrational and repugnant. Government should
    neither deny nor abridge any individual's human right
    based upon sex, wealth, ethnicity, creed, age,
    national origin, personal habits, political preference
    or sexual orientation. Parents, or other guardians,
    have the right to raise their children according to
    their own standards and beliefs. This statement shall
    not be construed to condone child abuse or neglect.



    3.6 Representative Government

    We support election systems that are more
    representative of the electorate at the federal, state
    and local levels. As private voluntary groups, political
    parties should be allowed to establish their own rules
    for nomination procedures, primaries and
    conventions. We call for an end to any tax-financed
    subsidies to candidates or parties and the repeal of
    all laws which restrict voluntary financing of election
    campaigns. We oppose laws that effectively exclude
    alternative candidates and parties, deny ballot access,
    gerrymander districts, or deny the voters their right
    to consider all legitimate alternatives. We advocate
    initiative, referendum, recall and repeal when used as
    popular checks on government.

    3.7 Self-Determination

    Whenever any form of government becomes
    destructive of individual liberty, it is the right of the
    people to alter or to abolish it, and to agree to such
    new governance as to them shall seem most likely to
    protect their liberty.
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