A PizzⒶ My Mind

If we don't stand for pizza, we stand for nothing at all.
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  • Cory MⒶssimino

Marriage Equality: Don’t Let the Good Become the Enemy of the Perfect Jul 3, 2015

It’s about damn time. The rest of the United States finally caught up to the libertarians on June 26 when the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide.  It only took 43 years but it looks like the authoritarian right is losing influence, as young people grow increasingly skeptical of power structures. Let’s celebrate this victory accordingly and appreciate the justice achieved by so many Americans who can now marry. what does a levitra pill look like But let’s not allow the good to become the enemy of the perfect. Elizabeth Tate reminds us, “The very act of...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote8 7

In Praise of Passive Foreign Policy May 19, 2015

To avoid confusion I want to clarify some terms and my usage of them. Pacifism has commonly been used to refer to two different concepts. The first is the view that violence is always wrong, even in self-defense. The second is the view that opposes war. I use pacifism here in the second sense. Why ought passivity be praised in general? Michael Huemer argues it is because, Political actors, including voters, activists, and leaders, are often ignorant of basic facts relevant to policy choices. Even experts have little understanding of the working of society and little ability to predict future...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote3 0

Libertarianism For and Against War May 16, 2015

Libertarian Reasons Against War (in no particular order): 1. War requires aggression. It’s simply irresponsible to speak of war without innocent casualties. Given the weapons, tactics, and scale of modern warfare, civilians are inevitably put in harm’s way. To separate modern warfare from innocent deaths seems to rely on an unrealistic conception of how war actually is in the real world. The notion of "defensive war" is long outdated. All wars are aggressive. Even ones that are supposedly fought in response to some sort of aggression end up killing innocents. But what if those civilian casualties are merely a side-effect...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote2 0

Why I Fight Against $15 May 9, 2015

Kevin Carson recently wrote in support of the Fight for $15 movement. While usually associated with the modern fight for a state mandated minimum wage, Carson rejects that argument and instead turns to other methods by which the labor movement fought for better conditions and wages in the 19th century, such as “information and pressure campaigns against employers” and “direct action on the job.” While I’m glad to see Carson reject the state coercion in a government enforced minimum wage and the emphasize worker empowerment, I’m not in agreement when it comes to aligning with a concerted effort for a national wage floor....

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote6 8

Benjamin Tucker, Boston Anarchist May 3, 2015

The Civil War caused a huge schism in the American libertarian movement from which it wouldn’t recover for decades. Inner conflicts between abolitionists who favored the war and the invasion of the South, ones who saw the war as inevitable and required to end slavery, and those who thought the war was an egregious moral wrong in and of itself and unnecessary to end slavery caused the libertarian movement to faction off into other radical social movements, such as freethought, free love, and the labor movement. After 1865, the individualist tradition lived on, not in a distinct libertarian movement, but...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote2 0

What is Anarchism? Apr 14, 2015

Anarchism is a broad tradition of historical ideas that contain common elements that are nevertheless, sometimes, conflicting. There is no set of positions that you must hold in order to count as a real anarchist. Rather, in my view, anarchism involves three main points of conceptual analysis. That is the view of anarchism as a kind of political philosophy; the use of anarchism as a basis for empirical study, scientific research and the attitude of anarchism. Anarchism as Political Philosophy Anarchism questions the very foundations that political theory, and by extension, the state, supposedly rests upon. Rather than seeing the state as...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote3 10

It’s ok to be absolutist about markets Mar 30, 2015

In embracing markets as the key organizing force behind the social order, libertarians are quick to become absolutists about markets. The division of labor, commercial activity, entrepreneurship, private enterprise, and the price system all  become central to the libertarian’s idea system. And rightfully so. We are correct about markets. They are crucial, indeed required, for the social order to be one characterized by mutually beneficial, peaceful interaction and not by a warlike race between violent, competing interests. Contra our detractors, markets encourage social cooperation, not individual isolationism. The primary motivating factor to be against statism, government democracy, and central planning is...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote15 2

We are all Randian Mutualists Now Mar 29, 2015

Take a look at these quotes: "In the social order reciprocity is the formula of justice. Reciprocity is defined in the maxim: Do as you would be done by. Or translated into the language of political economy: Exchange products for products, buy your products mutually from one another. Social science means simply the organisation of mutual relations." "The principle of trade is the only rational ethical principle for all human relationships, personal and social, private and public, spiritual and material. It is the principle of justice. A trader is a man who earns what he gets and does not give or...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote2 0

What are the top 5 most important issues for libertarians? Mar 27, 2015

I have a strong affinity for lists and ranking things so lately I've been thinking a lot about what the most important problems are from a libertarian perspective. Libertarians have a whole ton of problems with modern institutions and society but just which are the most pertinent? My friend, Thomas Michie posed a similar question on Facebook, so I decided to write up my top 5. 1. War I tend to be a bit harder on war than the average libertarian as both an anarchist and a pacifist. I've long been against pre-emptive war, interventionist foreign policy, and standing armies. I've also...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote13 9

Murray Rothbard and the Movement for Liberty Mar 3, 2015

Murray Rothbard was born on this day in 1926. In 1935, accordingto Rothbard’s fourth grade teacher, “Murray seems so exceedingly happy that it is sometimes difficult to control his activities in the class.” Another teacher’s notes report that Murray “developed a combative spirit which frequently has to be checked. While this attitude is in itself, bad, still it is encouraging to see that his courage is increasing. Although this pugnacity has been developed largely in protecting a smaller child in a game against a larger group, it should be watched very carefully as it might very well lead to an...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote9 1

Open Letter to Ron Paul Feb 20, 2015

In spite of not even being published until now, this letter has taken on a life of its own since last Friday. A question was asked and lines were drawn. We sit here on the verge of a changing libertarian movement. Notwithstanding the overwhelming backlash Mackenzie, Cory, and I continue to stand behind this letter. While our tactics to express our concerns might have appeared unprofessional, we would like to clarify our intentions and overall goals of both the question and letter. The purpose of this letter was never to insult or belittle the influence of leading figures of liberty....

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote26 45

Yes, Income Inequality Matters Jan 16, 2015

My colleague, Gannon LeBlanc, recently wrote a piece in Townhall arguing income inequality is not an underlying problem in America. Gannon argues income inequality doomsayers are focusing on “income,” when they should be focused on “wealth.” He also points out that someone as liberal as Paul Krugman found some problems in the arguments against income inequality put forth by Joseph Stiglitz, not to mention the fact that even the poorest Americans are among the richest people in the entire world. I largely agree with these points, but they don’t address the fundamental issue. Gannon understands this and correctly points out, “The...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote18 4

Abolish the Wage System, not Wage Labor Dec 13, 2014

Right libertarians tend to be brilliant defenders of wage labor, but often overlook the wage system. They are right as far as they go about wage labor, but ignore the structural inequality that affects the kinds of employment opportunities that people have — the kind that relies on political power. Wage labor is fine. The wage system needs to go. Wage labor is merely the act of working for wages, usually for an employer. There is nothing inherently wrong with this. Any freely made exchange is, by definition, mutually beneficial since the parties involved wouldn’t trade if they didn’t think...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote13 26

Inquires Aren’t the Answer to Eric Garner Dec 9, 2014

“I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe.” These were the last words of Eric Garner, the latest victim in the police’s war on black people. Despite the fact that chokeholds are not a permissible arrest policy, a grand jury decided not to indict Officer Daniel Pantaleo last week, following on the heels of multiple other instances across the country of police killing unarmed black people. In Cleveland, Officer Timothy Loehmann shot and killed 12-year-old Tamir Rice after mistaking a BB gun for a more dangerous weapon, despite the fact that the officer had previously been evaluated as unfit for...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote2 0

But Kaaaarl, the Problem is the State! Dec 7, 2014

One of libertarianism’s key insights is the emphasis on the role of institutions in shaping society. That’s why you don’t find many libertarians complaining that, “Bush is the problem,” or “Obama needs to go!” It’s not that we don’t think Bush and Obama are horrible (we do!), it’s that we recognize the real problem is structural. The system is ultimately what’s to blame, not whoever happens to be in power. Politically focused change is overrated. After all, the sentiment that “the oppressed are allowed once every few years to decide which particular representatives of the oppressing class are to represent...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote11 2

AEI’s Perry Ignores the Unseen Nov 24, 2014

In his classic essay, What is Seen and What is Not Seen, Frederic Bastiat remarks, “There is only one difference between a bad economist and a good one: The bad economist confines himself to the visible effect; the good economist takes into account both the effect that can be seen and those effects that must be foreseen.” The American Enterprise Institute’s Mark J. Perry finds himself on the “bad” side of Bastiat’s divide. Perry concludes from a CBO federal income tax report that, “’the rich’ are paying beyond their fair share of the total tax burden, and we might want to start asking if the bottom...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote16 0

12 out of 13 Ain’t Bad Nov 19, 2014

Twelve past Nobel Peace Prize winners are asking a 13th member of their club to ensure that the Central Intelligence Agency’s upcoming report includes information about harsh interrogation US government tactics following 9/11. While these 12 Nobel laureates seem to understand the moral imperative of transparency and simple human decency, even during the so-called “war on terror,” the 13th – the face of a murderous, imperial presidency — is widely regarded as having tainted the award. The other 12 winners understand, as does any decent person, that neither democratic votes nor Nobel Prizes license one to bomb, spy on or torture innocent people. Unfortunately the 13th winner disagrees and...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote6 2

Libertarian Feminism: Rape Culture as a Spontaneous Order Nov 18, 2014

Libertarians often respond to feminists’ claims of “rape culture” with lots of dismissive hand waving. On first glance, it seems like rape culture seems like an anti-concept. The conspiratorial notion that the entire male population is working together to consciously bring about a system of intimidation and control through the use of rape is implausible. After all, most men are not rapists and as a male, I can tell you there is no such heinous plot I’m aware of. But on second glance, and in an attempt to bridge libertarian and feminist thinking, can we apply traditionally libertarian insights to...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote11 4

Why is There No War on Auto-erotic Asphyxiation? Nov 6, 2014

Ask the average person on the street what kills more Americans – choking yourself to get off or evil terrorists? I haven’t done this myself but I suspect the results would be tilted quite far to the “evil terrorist” side. And why wouldn’t they be? After all, America is engaged in an epic struggle against terrorists who hate us for our freedom. Ever since the United States was attacked on September 11, 2001, terrorists abroad are by far the biggest threat to American lives and that evil demands to be met with brute, good ol’ fashion, American military might. We...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote8 2

It’s Time for Forgetting Oct 28, 2014

October 28 marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most classic and revered political speeches in American history. Ronald Reagan’s “A Time for Choosing” roused the American people and was a crucial moment in his ascendance to the conservative leader he became. That’s why it’s crucial that we forget it. A popular conservative news site writes, “we would do well to also remember the choice he made that became the spark, spirit and driving force of his vision for the country.” Ah don’t the rhetoric and buzzwords fill you with a sense of patriotism? If it doesn’t you probably hate America…or...

By Cory MⒶssimino Vote5 2

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