Choosing freedom and liberty


Mulling over differences
More news this afternoon, but for right now I'm going to be the part time philosopher again.

Recently Sunni Maravillosa reviewed this site and she said that she didn't believe my bit about "using only extremes just increases the problems" when applied to liberty.

And before anyone gets the wrong idea, I like people who think and who disagree with me on some things. It keeps me honest and humble and makes me re-examine my ideas. I'd be more concerned if someone agreed with everything I said.

Anyway, Sunni's comments got me to thinking about liberty.

There is a great quote from Charles Murray's What It Means to be a Libertarian.

"Mindful human beings require freedom and personal responsibility to live satisfying lives."

Obviously this has some exceptions. I'm not a parent, but I do not believe children can be allowed total freedom. Although I do believe that most children are capable of more personal responsibility than they are allowed. At the same time, my stepfather's recent descent into dementia reminds me again that there are cases where adults can't be allowed to make their own choices either. As Mr. Murray explains in his book, this is an exception because arguably, my stepfather isn't in his right mind.

Even before this last episode started a couple of months ago, my mother and I had acted to limit my stepfather's freedom. Part of this was because of his various medical conditions, but part of this was because in the past he repeatedly showed how irresponsible he could be about some things.

And that shows the flaw in this paternalistic attitude. By some standards, I'm pretty out there myself. I don't have a mainstream faith, I'm a lot more open about nudity and sex than most people are comfortable with, and during my Corporate Clone days I used sex and sexual politics in some pretty reprehensible ways. Granted, it was the way that the game was played (and still is in some companies), but it wasn't exactly normal or "responsible" behavior.

So is it only my ability to appear normal that keeps me free? And what kind of freedom is that?

I've told long time readers before that being libertarian (small "l") and a Pagan is almost asking for trouble in some circles. For some of the more highly visible Neopagans today, it is almost a given that any one of the True Faith™ is a Green, Socialist, or at least a Democrat.

And what about the people given a choice of freedom but still choose to be ruled? That is a favorite point of my friend juliaki. If I insist on my freedom from their dependency, do I interfere with their freedom to choose? Should their freedom place a cost on mine?

I'd say no, but my choice interferes with their choice at that point. While it is harsh, I think it's better that they take responsibility for themselves. In making that choice, I've limited their choice and their freedom even as I have preserved my own.

Libertarians tell people they should be free to do as they choose, so long as they don't interfere with the freedom of another.

But you can't make a choice and not interfere with the choice of another. That is where moderation comes in. Obviously there are compromises we have to make or we would all kill each other the first week. Classical liberal thought is organized on consent and free choice.

That's a guideline, not a rule.

— NeoWayland

Posted: Tue - June 27, 2006 at 05:00 AM  Tag


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