Quote:
Originally posted by wludavid
I'm still pretty young in comparison to the average age here on PPOT (25) but I've actually gotten more liberal as I've gotten older. I was seduced by libertarianism in HS and early college. (Actually, I really liked anarchism, but libertarian seemed more do-able.) A lot of my structure of thought came from reading Heinlein (v. libertarian) and from listening to my dad (who read Heinlein when he was younger).
But as I got older, I realized the "the invisible hand" of the market could not guarantee everyone a healthy and productive life, and that we need backup mechanisms in place.
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I'm with you up until the last sentence above. I was libertarian. I've concluded we need just enough government regulation to ensure a level playing field (no insider trading, etc.), but no more. The more "backup mechanisms" the government provides, the less people feel responsible for themselves (the government
should take care of me) and the more risky behavior they engage in (they don't have to pay the consequences).
Where do my beliefs come from?
I watched my father, who claimed to be a conservative, die living on welfare because he couldn't be bothered to find a job.
I watched my father, who claimed to be a conservative, sue nearly every family member or business associate he ever had, not because he had a case, but because he wanted money. I don't know most of my extended family because of my father. He sued, cheated or outright stole money from nearly everyone he was related to (myself included).
Then I learned there was this political party that says it's okay not to work, the government will provide for you as long as you have a somewhat believable excuse. They just so happen to be endorsed by the very same trial attorneys that helped my father to alienate my family, then took what little money he wrongly won as their compensation.