MSNBC‘s O’Donnell Rips ‘Fake Libertarian Ron Paul’ Over Contraception & Abortion →
Note: My input is anything italicized.
During a Thursday night segment on MSNBC’s “The Last Word With Lawrence O’Donnell,” the host claimed Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) was a “fake libertarian” because of the Congressman’s position on sexual ethics and birth control…
…The MSNBC host went on to explain that “real” libertarians have a no holds barred view of sexual ethics. In fact, according to O’Donnell, libertarians are more like anarchists when it comes to sex; there are no rules and no one is allowed to suggest that there might be “right” and “wrong” way of doing things.
Actually, as the article later points out
The Congressman believes an unborn child is a human being, and not just a “blob of tissue,” his opposition to abortion has nothing to do with legislating morality (as the MSNBC segment suggests) but everything to do with the defense of individual liberty.
“On the right-to-life issue, I believe, I’m a real stickler for civil liberties,” Rep. Paul said at the 2008 Conservative Political Action Conference, “It’s academic to talk about civil liberties if you don’t talk about the true protection of all life. [But] if you are going to protect liberty, you have to protect the life of the unborn just as well.”
O’Donnel demonstrates a common misconception in regards to the Libertarian Party regarding abortion.
A: A Libertarian’s beliefs regarding abortion does not necessarily stem from his/her moral opinion on the matter. Most Libertarians believe, regardless of his/her opinion on if it is morally wrong, that the government has no business funding abortions. In other words, taxpayer dollars should not be used in the process. Libertarians believe in minimal government. Thus, government funding to support abortions is anti-Libertarian. So O’Donnell insinuating that Libertarians are pro-choice is incorrect, because pro-choice means pro-government funded abortions. Yes, many Libertarians believe in a woman’s right to choose if she wants an abortion, but the government should not support it one way or the other.
B: Ron Paul has a different view on abortion, but it is still Libertarian. The basis of the Libertarian Party is protecting each individual’s right to life, liberty, and property. If you, like Ron Paul, believe that a fetus is a living human-being, then you can absolutely still be considered a Libertarian if you believe in protecting that individual’s right to life. So there is such a thing as a pro-life Libertarian. Protecting the right to life, no government funding; very Libertarian.
I encourage you to read the full article, the author gives a good outline of O’Donnell’s pseudo-intellectual blabbering.
26
February
This link was reblogged from anarchyandacupofcoffee and originally by anarchyandacupofcoffee.
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