PRO-WAR LIBERTARIANS: IS THERE SUCH A THING?

PRO-WAR LIBERTARIANS:
IS THERE SUCH A THING?

By: Red Phillips

Ever heard of a pro-War libertarian? They are also affectionately referred to as liberventionists? Talk show host and Fair Tax guy Neal Boortz is supposedly one of them. Blogger and Republican Consultant Eric Dondero is another. Personally though, I don’t really get it. As a paleocon myself, I am an outsider. Maybe that is why I am having so much trouble figuring this out. I thought one of the primary tenants of libertarianism is supposed to be that whole “non initiation of force” thing.

To me being a pro-war or interventionist libertarian makes about as much sense as being a Christian atheist, a teetotaling alcoholic, or the much ballyhooed but nonsensical “big-government conservative” But what do I know? Like I said, I am an outsider.

There is even a group of these liberventionists who are so committed to fighting the “War on Terror” that they are willing to put aside essential libertarian principles such as opposition to gun-control to support Rudy Giuliani. Eric Dondero, who is a former Senior Aide to Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX), is the ringleader of this bunch. Why is he not supporting his old boss you might ask? Well because Dondero is upset at Rep. Paul because Paul is actually staying true to his libertarian principles and opposing foreign intervention and the Iraq War. This has so incensed Dondero that he has announced he will be running against Paul in the Republican primary in 2008.

After much pondering, I think I have figured out what drives these pro-war libertarians. They are not so much principled libertarians as they are libertines, and they fear that Fundamentalist Muslims threaten their God given-right to sin. If Boortz and Dondero are any indication, a war on Fundamentalist Christians might be next.

Per the Eric Donderoes of the world, “Islamofascists” in far away lands threaten their right to sin here at home. So to protect against that undesirable outcome, they want to sick Rudy and the full force of the US Military on those evil Islamofascist and kill ‘em all so free Americans can continue to buy porn, fornicate and kill the unwanted byproduct of that act. (I guess you could sum that up in a slogan as “Kill Muslims so we can continue to make and kill babies.”)

Now exactly how those Islamofascists way over there in the Middle East threaten their right to ogle women has never been clear to me. The Donderoites seem to be ruled by an irrational fear and disdain for all things religious. You could consider them sort of the right-wing mirror image of Christopher Hitchens. In the fearful, jingoistic wet dreams of ol’ Eric, I guess the Iranian Navy is traversing the Atlantic as we speak. Ready to land a large Normandy style assault force somewhere in Galveston Bay where they will quickly dispatch all resistance as they make their way from town to town slaughtering infidels. After they make quick work of all the gun toting Texans that stand in their way, they will single out poor Eric and burn him at the stake in a fire fueled exclusively by his porn stash. (You would think as a Texan Eric would have more faith that his fellow Texans might protect him. Is the spirit of the Alamo totally dead?)

That is essentially the message of the hysterical, fear mongering, Donderoesq “pro-war Libertarians.” Kill all them evil Fundamentalist Muslims or else all the young nubile American women will be forced to wear Burqas. How Iraq, Syria, Iran etc. which don’t even have much of a Navy or Air Force to speak of are supposed to make this forced Burqa wearing happen is a real head scratcher. But I’m sure Eric has dreamed up some plausible scenario.

All kidding aside, the ultimate illustration of the pro-war libertarian’s misplaced priorities is that they are willing to cast essential libertarian principles aside to support Benito … err … Rudy who is about as close to a fascist as you will find in America. Indiscriminately killing Muslim sure does make for some strange bedfellows.

Published originally at EtherZone.com : republication allowed with this notice and hyperlink intact."

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Red Phillips is a physician from Georgia. He occasionally blogs at Conservative Times. He is a regular columnist for Ether Zone.

Red Phillips may be contacted at: redphillipsmd@yahoo.com