Also, everyone knows that gyrocopters are the future of tasty Greek food delivery.

>Grassroots activism counts for a lot more than money.

On what planet, exactly? Or, okay, in what country? There are probably still democracies in which this is the case, but I can't agree that ours is one of them. As an activist in areas ranging from drug policy to free speech to electronic freedom to consumer protection, I would submit that the power of money is paramount in the year 2000. Political realities demand it. If other politicians are exchanging influence for cash, yours probably will be too -- or else she won't be able to pay for the ads, and she probably won't get elected. There are brave exceptions, of course, but they're few and far between. Even when a political battle goes my way, it's usually because an organization like the ACLU or the EFF -- with the help of my financial contributions -- has been able to *pay* to fight the expensive legal or legislative fights that are, sadly, vital to overturning unconstitutional legislation.

And yes, I am a member of the Libertarian Party, and I regularly vote that way (though I also vote for Democrats and sometimes even Republicans, based on the candidates and my perception of the closeness of the race). As such, while I'll try to be succinct, I'd like to counter just a couple of the accusations which have been made against Libertarians in this thread.

First of all, not all Libertarians wish to abolish the income tax, eliminate foreign aid, and axe all government programs that aren't directly involved in protecting liberties. That's the perception of some, but it's far from reality. I happen to agree with those who have argued that pure libertarianism would never work. But, so what? I would argue that neither pure conservatism nor pure liberalism would work either; there are strengths and weaknesses to both, and the reason that there are so many passionate people on both sides probably has something to do with the fact that the "best" course lies somewhere in between. I am a Libertarian because I have seen, time and time again, that neither the Democratic nor the Republican parties are any longer truly committed to protecting civil liberties. The economic axis of the political map gets most of the attention, while with respect to the personal-freedom axis, both major parties are content to blame the other for our undeniable shift toward authoritarianism. And most of us buy it, though even a cursory perusal of the Congressional Record and voting logs makes it clear that attacking civil liberties has become a truly bipartisan sport. Following the money trails may help me understand why this is, but it doesn't make me want to be a part of it any more than I have to.

I would also take issue with the suggestion that Libertarians wish to take power out of the hands of the government and put it into the hands of the corporations. Far from it. Indeed, another of the primary reasons I became a Libertarian was to fight the undeniable influence of the latter on the former. Look at the Napster battle. Look at the DVD/DeCSS battle. Heck, look at the Drug War, and follow the money trails back from the most vociferous warriors in Congress to the alcohol, tobacco, and pharmaceutical industries, all of whom have major vested interests in keeping illicit substances illicit (even for medicinal purposes). All of this stuff tends to annoy Libertarians -- who, not coincidentally, tend to be among the strongest advocates of the kind of campaign finance reform to which *most* Republicrat politicians pay lip service and little else, since they just don't see it as being in their best interests.

Finally, there's the last major accusation which is regularly made against Libertarian/Green/Reform/Natural Law etc. voters, which is that we're "throwing our votes away." However you happen to come down on the Nader issue, I'd say that a glance at the Florida totals would demonstrate that this isn't the case. Enough Florida progressives simply couldn't vote for Gore with a clean conscience that he lost the election. It's that simple. Don't feel like playing that kind of roulette and taking a chance that you'll be helping the candidate you consider the greater of two evils? Hey, fine! Just *register* Libertarian; it'll still have an impact. Or give to the ACLU, the EFF, or other groups that fight for liberties. All I ask is that you don't judge my party until you're sure you know what we're about.

Ethan