The Bleeding Heart Conversation

I couldn’t be more excited about the conversation going on at the Bleeding Heart Libertarians blog. The BHL blog is an ongoing conversation between libertarians who share many of the same social concerns with those on the Progressive Left. So far the conversation has been lively and engaging.

I’m excited because my own spiritual and ideological journey has taken me down a path that has led to a very interesting dichotomy. Eight years ago I was being drawn toward and have affirmed some progressive theology. But when it came to the social policies advocated by many social justice Christians, there seemed to be a disconnect. I soon realized that in order to assess ways to achieve socially just outcomes, the key is to develop an economic way of thinking.

I discovered that the Austrian school was not only engaging in its style and presentation, they carried with them the necessary skills to assess the social concerns I had. Austrian economists (and libertarian economists in general) have the verbal acuity to explain the makeup of our social DNA.

Art Carden is one of the most penetrating writers in the Austrian school. Art makes easy that which is often difficult to wrap one’s brain around, with fewer words and elegant prose. This week he wrote a piece called “Libertarian Compassionomics?” in his Forbes.com column which was picked up and responded to my Matt Zwolinski at BHL. I heartily recommend reading Art’s piece, then Matt’s, then Art’s response, and join the conversation.

Conversations are journeys. They lead us to truth, not because truth is the destination, but because it is found in the ongoing process that takes place among those who are passionately committed to the truth and to the conversation.

Sometimes the point of the journey isn’t merely the destination.