“It’s Not Me, It’s You” – The Failures of Libertarian Likability

In July, I attended FreedomFest, the world’s largest gathering of free minds. Really, it’s the libertarian trade show. Have you heard of it?

It’s a niche conference. I don’t know how many times I’ve had to revise my elevator pitch because it’s hard to explain what the heck the liberty-movement is and what a think tank is to regular people. I certainly don’t expect many people to know about a conference for this type of work, let alone get why it is that we all meet up in the hottest month of the year in one of the hottest places in the US.

So when I was sharing with a friend about what I’d been up to this summer and he actually knew what FreedomFest was, I near jumped out of my jelly sandals!

The conversation went something like this:

“You know about FreedomFest?” I practically hopped right into his personal space.

“Yeah, it’s that conference where all those crazy, weird libertarians get together, right?”

My heart sank.

“Yes.” I begrudgingly answered. “…But you do remember I’m one of those libertarians, right?”

“Yeah, you’re weird enough to fit in, but you’re not like, a crazy libertarian.”

Ouch.

It’s Not Them, It’s Us

This friend is likely more aligned with libertarian ideas than he realizes. So why doesn’t he realize it? Why does he associate “libertarian” with “crazy” and “weird”?

The first thing to check would be the message. Perhaps the ideas themselves are antithetical to the ones he has already formed and holds to be true/good. But like I said, I know he agrees with us, at least to some degree.

So that leaves the messenger. My conclusion: we, my friends, are to blame.

The interactions he’s had with us – or with libertarians at large – have been less than pleasant.

The real problem isn’t that people think we’re weird and crazy, though. To be fair, we totally are (be honest, it’s not just me).

We’re the ones still hoping for change. We’re the ones working to prove that the American experiment is still a success and can continue to be one. So yes, we are actually crazy.

I think if we’re all being honest, we know (and maybe have even been at some point) the crazy weirdos to whom he refers. And the reason this crazy and weird is bad is because it makes us unlikable.

And I’m not talking about the occasional heated debate between friends or those of us who talk with our hands (we Italians can’t help it). What I’m referring to are the libertarians who seem to take pleasure in being mean and nasty on social media. The ones who scream about anarchy and guns and drugs making us sound like all we want is unfettered chaos. The ones who ignore all nuance to their arguments and fail to understand where the other side is coming from, or worse, simply don’t care. It’s the economists who forget that real people are represented behind their charts and graphs.

Can I Get an Ally, Please?

That’s the picture of Libertarianism the rest of the country sees and dislikes. Not because of the ideas themselves necessarily, but because of the delivery.

But if you’re like me, you kind of resent the reputation that a botched interview or angry Twitter rant from a few individuals gives to all libertarians. After all, it can be practically impossible to get anyone else to talk to us, let alone partner with us on any policy issues if they are expecting rigid ideas and vitriol.

We need to do a better job showcasing the diversity of our ideas and the solutions that can flow from them. Because really, if even potential allies feel so alienated by our approach that they are unwilling to even discuss the ways we might be similar, how can we ever hope to talk to those with whom we completely disagree?

How do we expect to keep these ideas alive for future generations? Will liberty die with us?

Let’s Move the Needle

I’m of the opinion that it doesn’t have to.

On one hand, we need to remember manners and respect in our dialog; on the other, we just have to go back to our roots: freedom.

Our saving grace is that we do attract a gradation of ideas to the liberty-movement. Some of us identify as more anarcho-capitalist, others classical liberals, and still others like me, conservatarians. Highlighting the nuance of liberty can help people see a place for themselves in our movement. Not just one that proclaims freedom in policy, but one that creates it by allowing freedom of ideas within our own spectrum of principles.

There will be mistakes; we’re all only human. (But please do try hard not to rage about trade-offs in bars). Nevertheless, I truly believe that if we hustle, we can restore our image and present an accurate depiction of what it means to be libertarian – in all its variations and forms- and how libertarianism at its heart strives towards what my colleague calls “the freedom to prosper.”
And really, who can’t get behind that?

Next week I’m going to dive a little deeper into specific ways that we can get people to like us (besides just not yelling at them – though that is a good place to start!).