KOL318 | The Libertarianism Litmus Test, Part 1 – With Keith Knight, “Don’t Tread on Anyone”

by Stephan Kinsella on February 8, 2021

Kinsella on Liberty Podcast, Episode 318.

This is my appearance on Keith Knight’s Youtube show “Don’t Tread on Anyone” (Feb. 3, 2021), discussing my “Libertarian Litmus Test” post on Facebook:

Time to update the libertarian litmus test:

To be a solid libertarian, you must be good on the following (ranked roughly in order of importance/obviousness):

1. IP

2. central banking/the Fed

3. taxation

4. the drug war

5. war

6. welfare

7. government education

8. the state (anarchist)

9. and now, covid lockdowns (no offense, paranoid and “respectable” libertards)

I’ll let you slide on one issue (“one deviation”), but one only. But you miss two, and you’re relegated to Time Out.

Youtube embedded below. See also KOL319 | The Libertarianism Litmus Test, Part 2 – With Keith Knight, “Don’t Tread on Anyone”

Time markers:

0:00 – What is libertarianism?
2:19 – Intellectual Property
6:07 – History of IP
13:05 – Central banking
16:11 – Taxation
18:06 – Drug war
20:30 – War
22:39 – Welfare
24:28 – State education
27:54 – The state
31:12 – Lockdowns
34:09 – A Proper understanding of socialism and capitalism
43:35 – Most important contributions of….
- Carl Menger
- Eugen von Bohm-Bawerk: Shorter Classics – chapter II, “WHETHER LEGAL RIGHTS AND RELATIONSHIPS ARE ECONOMIC GOODS”
- Ludwig von Mises — UFOES
- F.A. Hayek — not a big fan
- Murray N. Rothbard- Economic Controversies
- Walter Block
- Lew Rockwell — The Free Market Reader