*Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the Libertarian Party and do not reflect the views of Her Campus or Agnes Scott College.
It’s common knowledge that every election is the “craziest one yet,” but this one seems to take the cake. In one ear I hear, “Trump’s a racist and a sexist!” and in the other it’s, “Hillary is a criminal and a murderer!” Okay, I get it! So why are you voting for one of them?
There are alternative options and some aren’t as crazy as you may have originally thought. Libertarians understand more about economics and serving the public than you could possibly imagine. Are you laughing right now? Think I’m crazy? I’ve been called worse. But before you click away, read through some of these policies. Nothing’s wrong with learning a bit about a minority even if you don’t support it. It’s also important to consider ALL of your options before voting. Below is a list of a few of the libertarian beliefs which can all be found on their website.
Crime
A “crime” is an act of force or fraud. If the action doesn’t fall under those two descriptions, e.g. the use of marijuana, it should not be counted as a crime. The current justice system also has punishments that outweigh the crime and that aren’t fair. There needs to be a more fair and humane system put in place. Our prisons are currently set up to make inmates bitter, angry, and depressed. Prisoners need to be ready to provide for society and for themselves when they are released, not be prone to more crime sprees.
“[Libertarians] want to see justice for victims and also justice for the accused and convicted. The rights of every person matter and we must not turn a blind eye to the rights of the accused or the convicted.”
Foreign Policy
The United States relies on the military way too much. It doesn’t matter how our military interacts with another country, it will always cause problems. Imagine if Russia made a military base here saying they wanted to help us. How would we react?
“Foreign policy should focus more heavily on developing communications among peoples and finding peaceful resolutions to disagreements.” The military should be maintained for defense purposes only.
Cartoon by Valeriy Osipov
Healthcare
Removing government interference and enabling free markets is the best way to provide access to quality and affordable healthcare.
“Government inappropriately controls in our healthcare in many ways:
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Government and a handful of insurance companies have a virtual monopoly as payers. Because of this, they make most of the decisions about what kinds of healthcare are available.
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Government regulates where, when, and who may open new healthcare facilities.
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Government agencies greatly slow development of and access to new medicines, devices, and technologies that may improve quality of care and reduce cost of care.”
The government sets prices they will provide for doctors and hospitals. The payments don’t increase at the same rate as inflation or the prices for medical care. Doctors are then forced to cut short their hours and hospitals aren’t able to upgrade their facilities. Insurance companies also tend to set prices based on government prices. All of this causes low quality. The government also regulates where buildings are built, who builds them, and when they build them. All of this needs permissions and is a very costly and slow process. This method favors big corporations as well, not allowing small businesses to open which limits patients’ choices and access to medical care.
Tax
Fair Tax takes all federal taxes and replaces them with one national consumption tax (tax on goods and services) that is only applied to those above poverty level. It not only immensely simplifies the system, but gets rid of the IRS so we then have control over our money that we work hard to earn. Taxes will be taken from what we spend, and naturally, no matter the tax system, the rich buy more and the middle class buy less. It’s also revenue neutral which means it doesn’t take away from what the government is currently earning. Why do we need over 90 different kinds of taxes when the system can be simplified with even better results for the people and the government? Not convinced? FairTax.org can provide with you with more information.
Cartoon by Clifford K. Berryman
Drugs
The War on Drugs puts non-violent people in prison when we could easily free up the room for criminals that do harm by force or fraud. It’s a better use of our resources. The method and laws we currently have also cause a militarization and aggression of police force towards citizens, which is unfair to both groups. The police’s time and efforts should be spent putting criminals who are violent and violate other citizen’s rights in prison. This War on Drugs also “empowers dangerous gangs that make incredible fortunes on the black market for these illegal drugs.”
Immigration
All people should be able to travel freely as long as they follow our laws. Undocumented immigrants should not be classified as criminals automatically. Many immigrants are happy to follow the proper legal procedures to becoming US citizens but are trying to escape a bad situation and therefore feel unable to due to our complex, expensive, and long process. If immigrants are allowed to enter the US legally, then the process should be fair and accessible, not what it is now.
Curious about the party?
Again, all of these ideas and more can be found and explained in more detail at https://www.lp.org/. The libertarian candidate running this election is Governor Gary Johnson. Remember to always research and not to outright reject any idea because it seems bad on the surface. The government and economy is complex. Allow yourself to search for ideas and options you may not have been aware existed.
Gary Johnson at CPAC FL in Orlando, Florida