Actually, I think pretty much everyone is confused about this topic, so, since everyone has spontaneously become a libertarian following the election of Brack Obama, I think we need to get our definitions straight. In the linked audio clip, Glenn Beck refers to Muse as a group of libertarians and he identifies with their lyrics. It’s true they are (or at least Matthew Belamey is), but what people need to understand is that there are two kinds of libertarians: one on the left and one on the right.

By agreeing with Muse, Glenn is indirectly agreeing with socialism. Matthew Belamey is a proponent of Geoism, which is a belief that land belongs to everyone rather than the private individuals who can afford it (it’s different from communism, but I don’t want to get into details right now). Beck was specifically giving a nod to the anti-globalization, Orwellian stuff in Muse’s music, which I think most libertarians agree with. I think if he spent a little more time getting to know the band, though, he’d be pretty put off.

I have some thoughts on right libertarians, but I’m not in the mood for arguing politics right now, so I’m not getting into it. I’m also not in the mood for hyperbole at the moment, so what follows are two quick and humorless definitions of the two sides.

Right Libertarian

Here in the United States libertarianism is associated with right-wing politics. The third-largest political party in the U.S. is the Libertarian Party (with a big L), which is aligned to the right. They, like all libertarians, are primarily interested in optimizing individual liberties. They see the government as the main suppressor of liberties, so they’re (quite obviously) in favor of decreasing government power. They’re pro-capitalism – they believe in free markets and private ownership. By freeing the marketplace from government control, right-libertarians believe private citizens will be free to maximize their full potential.

Ron Paul is probably the most high-profile right-libertarian in the United States. A LOT of people, including myself for a time, supported him during the presidential primaries.

Left Libertarian

In Europe the term libertarian refers to a left-leaning political philosophy associated with socialism (but generally not state-controlled socialism). These guys are against private property and pro-union. So, off the bat, from the socialism to the unions, these people are not the kind of people Beck wants to be talking up.

The fundamental ideal that differentiates left-libertarianism from what we have here in the U.S. is a distrust of institutionalized authority in ALL of its forms – not just government. Some examples include your boss and the corporate hierarchy of your employer, religious authority, the power of the wealthy over the poor, even a husband’s authority over his wife (“to love, cherish, and to obey, till death us do part”).

Left libertarianism predates the version we have here in America, and some on the left are opposed to our use of libertarian as a pro-capitalist term.

Noam Chomsky is a well-known left-leaning libertarian.

That’s all. Sorry for not ranting. Maybe next time.