His previous videos are primarily educational, and while his newest one does educate, it’s extremely practical. As a response to a left-liberal video called The Story of Broke (same creators as The Story of Stuff), it sets an example of how to talk about public choice problems and the knowledge problem while at the same time agreeing with much of the critique of our current system. It’s simple, and brilliant. Add to that the amazing production effects (seriously, there are sharks in this video!), and it’s a wonderful 4-minute video.

Check it out:

Post from: LibertarianChristians.com

The Story of Broke Response

Politically and culturally, we saw many things to distress us. War, economic destruction, creeping statism, loss of liberty – it only seemed to get worse throughout the year. Nonetheless, we also continue to see good signs ahead. The younger generation of libertarians is rising up and making a difference, we see it in groups like Libertarian Longhorns and Students for Liberty. The Ron Paul 2012 campaign is clearly having an impact. Something is happening, and we have yet to see how events will unfurl.

2011 was also a big year for LibertarianChristians.com, but I am absolutely certain that 2012 will be even bigger. The presidential election is an opportunity to reach out like never before to Christians desperately searching for an alternative to the behemoth state. LCC is being seen around the world like never before. I’ve never seen so much activity and discussion here and on social networks like Facebook and Twitter about Christianity and libertarianism. I’m committing myself to being extra-vigilant this year to bring you the best content I can offer, so that we can all keep building on this momentum.

I hope that you find a way this year to make a difference for Christ and for liberty. I hope especially that you find opportunities to show Christians the rightness and value of true political liberty.

What do you want to do this year? What do you want to see LCC do? Let us know in the comments…

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Welcome to 2012, Christian libertarian friends

(1) A holiday officially declared by the Federal Government is unconstitutional. There is no power in the Constitution to establish a holiday, or to do 99% of the other things the Feds do for that matter. This gets particularly ironic with “Constitution Day”, which unconstitutionally requires unconstitutionally established educational institutions to teach about – you guessed it – the Constitution. Although C-day is not strictly speaking a “holiday” where certain privileged classes (i.e. government workers) get a day off, the contradictory nature of it all is biting.

(2) Government-established holidays subtly reinforce the meta-narrative of the-state-as-religion, because a holiday is, after all, a "holy day". I get the idea of commemorating events, that’s fine, and obviously a day like Veteran’s Day isn’t treated the same way as true "holy days" like Christmas or Easter, but it still rubs me the wrong way.

What do you think?

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Can the government create a holiday out of thin air?

But for the time being, there is a more pressing matter to which we must attend. For some time, the old Christian Libertarian Facebook Group has been without an admin due to the previous admin deleting his Facebook account without adding another admin to the group. Without an admin, this group was incapable of being upgraded to the new Facebook Groups format, and is now scheduled to be archived. I believe this means the data will still be there, but nothing new can be posted.

In response, I have started a NEW Christian libertarian Facebook group, and I hope that you’ll take a moment to follow the link and join. It’s an open group and free to join (although I think you have to be “approved” upon request). Also, feel free to add your friends, family, etc.

Christian libertarianism is a growing movement, and social networking is going to be an essential part of making sure that people know each other and can keep in contact. The previous Facebook group had over 900 members in it, and I hope we can more than double that number the next year. Please join the new group and spread the word!

UPDATE: To think, I would speak of Facebook and not remind people to “like” the LibertarianChristians.com Fan Page! Shame on me!

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Please join the new Christian libertarian Facebook group

So while Wes’s satire accurately pinpoints the distorted perspective the progressive left has regarding markets and defenders of liberty, I never thought I would actually hear somebody argue that Ron Paul really was against puppies.

Until today.

While it’s a bit difficult to tell if this is in jest or is serious, it’s definitely not satire. I’ve read the article three times, and I can’t find anything “unserious” about it, although in good faith maybe the writer simply wanted to poke fun at Dr. Paul just to make the puppy story intriguing.

But if the Ron Paul campaign gains more ground, be prepared to ward off the zombies!

Editor’s Note: LCC fully supports the elimination of the draft of puppies into government service.

Post from: LibertarianChristians.com

Ron Paul is Against Cute Puppies

Controversy is no stranger to libertarians. We believe so strongly in such powerful principles that we cannot help but be pulled into a good debate. We work hard to hammer out ideas, to speak truth in the face of power, to persuade people of a better way of thinking and living.

But we also know that we don’t have all the answers, and that what we have to say is not the final word. Let’s be willing to hear other voices too. Whether it’s revisiting our theory of rights as Doug Douma has challenged us to do, or working out a consistent theology of public policy as John Cobin’s essays have been teaching us, or trying to understand self-defense from a Christian perspective, let us keep our minds open and tongues civil as we discuss, debate, and work toward greater liberty. Remember when you first discovered the principles of liberty and how you had to keep an open mind as you deconstructed your previous thought patterns. We haven’t finished that task yet.

Finally, even though the topics are serious, let us not take ourselves too seriously. We are not so important to be exempt from being patient, kind, and humble – all of which are great virtues no matter what perspective you come from.

That being said, what topics are challenging you to think differently these days? Speak out in the comments and give me an idea of what you are thinking… Perhaps it can be addressed in future articles? Until then, be of good cheer liberty lovers.

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On Libertarian Controversy, in Brief

Down with war!

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How to have an ethical war

Post from: LibertarianChristians.com

This is not a form of brainwashing.

Here is an important distinction that might make things more clear: spreading the wealth is very different from sharing the wealth. As a Christian, even a libertarian one, I’m not against sharing wealth. As a follower of Jesus it is my responsibility to share the blessings of wealth with others, and it is my responsibility to encourage others to do the same. The calling of a Christian isn’t to simply be blessed, but to live what was Abraham’s original purpose: “blessed to be a blessing.” If we have it, we should share it (it’s only ours to steward anyway!).

However, spreading the wealth can be seen as a different sort of action altogether because it requires a third party confiscating the wealth (and its accompanying responsibility for stewardship) from one person and redistributing it to another. As a means of building a just economic system, it falls short because it requires only aggression and force, not willing participation. While it could be said that some people within such a system wish to share, the mechanism of spreading the wealth ought not be ignored as we evaluate the institutions we seek to achieve our goals.

Progressives tend to use an ends-based justification for their social agenda, pointing to end results as the litmus test for whether or not a policy is legitimate; if it “works,” then it’s a good policy. Libertarians lean toward a means-based ethic that largely regards things such as aggressive coercion as inherently immoral, and thus regard such mechanisms of social change as off-limits.

Yet even if we agree that the ends justify the means, the end results under the above scenarios actually yield different results. In an economic system where shared wealth is a value by all of its participants, is it not safe to believe that such a society is more just and relationships among members of society are more robust than under a “spread the wealth” system? Could we not all agree that the very act of sharing builds a just economic system even more glorifying to God than a mere system that “gets the job done”?

It may be true that God is pleased merely when poor people are fed and nobody is in need. Yet a deeper truth is that when relationships are made through sharing and working together, God is even more glorified because such an economic system is whole at the core, not just in its structure.

It is two different things to advocate the sharing of wealth and a spreading of the wealth. If we are going to be concerned about the relationships between the rich and poor, it is likely futile to place our hopes in an institution that divides and builds resentment between the people it promises to unite.

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Wealth: Spread it or Share it?

Here’s a letter I had published in the Washington Post about 1 year ago:

French President Nicolas Sarkozy claims that banning burqas would uphold traditional European values. Unless he is referring to the values of a few infamous European dictators, he could not be more mistaken.

The bedrock of European cultural and political traditions is [classical] liberalism. A true liberal understands that the use of force, by which all government edicts are ultimately backed, is neither an effective nor moral means of promoting values. Banning an expression of religious conviction in the name of protecting a liberal culture is the stuff of satire.

Force is the tool of those who lack the competence or courage to peacefully persuade.

Isaac M. Morehouse, Falls Church

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Burqa Bans and True European Values