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Don’t Listen to Libertarians

The music duo Clay Babies has a new single with revenue going to an organization fighting to get big money out of politics and create a true democracy that will replace our current plutocratic tendencies. Following is my song’s impetus.

I share my thoughts humbly because I have a lot to learn, though I also have the ability to think for myself. But from what I can tell, the Libertarian Party is made up of right-wing greedy capitalists who don’t want a democratic government in their way of making as much money as they can—and also their working-class members who’ve fallen for their propaganda. A functioning democracy that protects people and our environment would certainly get in the way of capitalists making the enormous profits they can make whenever they operate in dangerous, irresponsible or cruel ways. The Libertarian Party platform gives words to good-sounding ideas that left-wing people would agree with. But it’s flawed in major ways, as you can see if you know anything about people’s history, including the labor movement.

I like the words of Libertarians when they talk about freedom to follow our dreams and not live under an authoritarian government. But what I don’t hear them saying is how society should deal with it if it’s an individual’s dream to hoard the world’s resources for his own selfish gain or to create a company where his byproducts are poisoning workers or destroying waterways or groundwater. Libertarians don’t mind creating a society in which people are either of the rich-born ruling class or they live under a corporate tyranny. As long as it’s Walmart or Amazon that ends up owning the world and calling the shots, that’s fine by them because at least it’s not big bad government, right? Wrong! Restrictions on our freedom are bad whether it’s caused by government or by corporations. If we nix a democratic government and further deregulate corporations, that will result in less freedom and more suffering. History demonstrates this.

We can create a truly democratic government that is for the people, by the people, and benefits all of “we the people.” And that is something Libertarians don’t want.

Working-class Libertarians, dig deeper into what you want our country to be. The Libertarian Party stands for the freedom for the rich to become richer, the poor poorer, and the powerful more powerful. It stands for the freedom of individuals to cruelly exploit others. We can do better than that. We can create a world where peace defeats war and where all people everywhere enjoy liberty and justice. Libertarians claim the word “freedom,” but it doesn’t belong to them. If you want to see some people who truly love freedom, try looking at democratic socialists, the People’s Party, Working Families Party or progressives such as Justice Democrats who are fighting to take over the corrupt Democratic Party. Join us in creating a more peaceful and democratic world that truly fosters freedom for all.

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