What the heck is a libertarian?
I will offer three definitions: 1. The simple definition. A libertarian is someone who, in general, supports government policies that favor individual liberty in all matters, whether economic, personal, or social. Libertarians are frequently characterized as “conservative on economic issues and liberal on personal issues.” That’s not a bad definition, but it’s kind of like saying vodka is “half screwdriver and half white Russian.” It implies that libertarians are being inconsistent, whereas in fact libertarianism is more consistent than either conservatism or liberalism. I prefer to say, “Conservatives are frequently libertarian on economic issues, and liberals are frequently libertarian on personal issues.” (I would also say that conservatives are usually authoritarian on personal issues, and liberals are usually authoritarian on economic issues.) A list of policies that most libertarians support would include: legalization of drugs, legalization of all consensual sexual acts between
