KY Libertarian Party VP: "I'm here to say Rand does not have the Libertarian ideology."

[Lyric]

(Kentucky Libertarian Party VP Joshua) Koch said Paul's views on a variety of subjects differ from the Libertarian Party, including his promised support for any measures to ban abortion and his opposition to same-sex marriage.

"Trying to impose a national standard for that would throw the whole system out of balance, and that's definitely not Libertarian," Koch said.

Koch also said Paul is out of step with Libertarians in his unwillingness to call for U.S. troops to leave Iraq and Afghanistan.

"The reason why we would even consider running somebody in this race is because we're not going to let Rand determine what a Libertarian stands for," he said. "I'm here to say Rand does not have the Libertarian ideology."

Read article here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37358634/ns/politics-decision_2010/

Basic summary: the Libertarian Party of KY, formerly allied with Rand Paul, have now disowned him and are seeking to run a REAL Libertarian candidate against him thanks to his position statements that make it obvious that he's NOT a Libertarian. They're afraid that he's going to ruin the reputations of ACTUAL Libertarians with his right-wing poseuring.

Now can we please stop pretending that Rand Paul ISN'T a racist because he's a "Libertarian"? When the Libertarian leadership in Kentucky is antagonistic enough toward him to seek to run their own candidate against him, it's rather obvious that the man is NOT a Libertarian. He's a right-wing nut who's slandering Libertarianism by usurping it falsely for selfish political gain. Cherry-picking one or two "Libertarian" positions and watering them down with a hundred solidly right-wing Republican piles of bullcrap does NOT make someone a Libertarian. If Rand Paul is a Libertarian because he follows only one or two tenets of Libertarianism, then people who refuse red meat and poultry--but who gladly eat fish, eggs, milk, and honey--are Vegans.

He's a racist, misogynist, homophobic, right-wing, REPUBLICAN piece of trash--PERIOD.

[pnwmom]

1. His views on the Civil Rights Acts are completely in line with his Libertarianism.

Goldwater had the same views.

He does have places where he deviates -- such as his opposition to abortion -- but they can't disavow him because of his position on the Civil Rights laws. Hi position reflects classic Libertarianism.

[Lyric]

3. No, he's not.

And it's about a lot more than just his position on the Civil Rights Act.

An analogy:

It's possible for Vegans to disagree on whether or not certain things are acceptable within a vegan lifestyle. For example, some vegans are vehemently opposed to "fake meat" products like Tofurky, believing that such "substitutes" just serve, in the end, to reinforce the idea that we need to mimic the taste and texture of meat in our foods in order to have "satisfying" diets. Other, more practical, vegans believe that anything is fine so long as no actual animals are harmed or exploited in the process of creating the food. One side is more ideological--the other more practical. We see it right here at DU, quite often in regard to the term "liberal" and what it means (not "Democrat", but "liberal", specifically). Pretty much everyone here acknowledges that "liberals" are people who believe in things like public assistance, marriage equality, and progressive taxation. What we ARGUE about are the details; for example, should we fight hard for a full manifestation of what we believe to be right, without delay, or should we maintain a practical stance and accept "baby steps" as reason enough to celebrate?

However much vegans and liberals might bicker about the small details, the fact remains that everyone in those two respective camps agrees on the GOALS of the movement--the larger, overarching principles that define what it means to be "liberal" and/or "vegan". For vegans, this is very clear: absolutely NO use of animal meat or products. For liberals, it's also clear--if you oppose gay marriage, oppose abortion rights, and support a regressive national sales tax instead of a progressive income tax, then you're NOT a liberal--not even if you're a tree-hugging environmentalist who volunteers for Sea Shepherd missions and donates thousands to the ACLU every year. You might be a Democrat--it's a "big tent" after all--but you're not a liberal.

People who aren't vegans might espouse a few (or even most) vegan principles. They might avoid fur and leather, and avoid meat, eggs, and poultry...but still eat dairy products and honey. Even though MOST of their food choices are vegan, they're still breaking THE cardinal rule of what it MEANS to be vegan--that you should not willingly or knowingly consume any product of any animal, period. It doesn't matter that most of the things they do are "classically vegan". Knowingly advocating the idea that it's okay to eat dairy and honey means that you're not vegan--no matter WHAT you call yourself.

Rand Paul might have plenty of "classically Libertarian" positions, but he is NOT a Libertarian because he knowingly advocates for laws and regulations that violate the most basic standards of what it MEANS to be a Libertarian: severely limited government intrusion into private lives. He supports the two wars--the larger Libertarian movement does not. He believes the state should be allowed to regulate marriage contracts between individuals--Libertarians do not. He believes that the government should be allowed to regulate and control the bodies of women--in fact, he wants to ban abortion even in cases of rape and incest with the Human Life Amendment. He's against stem cell research.

Rand Paul is not a Libertarian just because he believes in a free market and lots fewer restrictions on businesses. Guess what? So do conservative Republicans! Rand Paul doesn't support drug legalization--he just thinks that the states, rather than the feds, should persecute the drug users. Libertarians believe that it's none of the government's business what you put into your body, because YOU own your body. It's THE most basic property right of all. Does Rand Paul support people owning their own bodies, fully and completely? Nope--see above in regard to abortion.

He is NOT a Libertarian. He's a Republican with Libertarian leanings on a few issues. I really wish people could understand that terms like "vegan", "liberal", and "Libertarian" will cease to MEAN anything if we continue to support idiots like Rand Paul who usurp the term without bothering to adhere to some of the most basic, vital principles that the term defines.

[pnwmom]

4. He has some views that comport with Libertarianism,

some that don't.

And his views on the Civil rights act, which were the subject of the recent controversy, are solidly in keeping with classic Libertarianism. Libertarians can't disavow him on the grounds of those views -- it is his other views (such as abortion and gay rights) that are opposed to Libertarians'.

[EFerrari]

2. LOL