84.

Do Not Vote in the Absence of Integrity

When elections near, campaigns to “get out the vote” move into high gear. Arguments about why you must vote for one of two major-party candidates begin appearing everywhere. But do those argument hold water?

This question of whether to vote is of particular importance to libertarians, given their commitment to freedom. They must ask, “Is voting or not voting more consistent with defending liberty?”

85.

Obeying Read’s Law

Leonard Read has definite ideas about the legitimate role of laws—that they should do no more than restrain harm to individuals and their rights because going further would violate the rights of some citizens. In “Read’s Law” (Read 1969c), an article from the October 1969 issue of The Freeman, he creates an eponymous law about fidelity to that principle.

86.

Our Politicians Would Probably Be
Better If We Picked Them by Lot

As we near every election, Americans hear political partisans arguing more and more intensely that if we vote for them and their coconspirators, we will end up in the best of all possible worlds. It reminds me of Will Rogers’s quip that “if we got one-tenth of what was promised to us . . . there wouldn’t be any inducement to go to heaven” (Ketchum 1973).

87.

Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied

If an injustice has been done, should it be prolonged or eliminated? The well-worn adage that “justice delayed is justice denied” would seem to make the answer clear. But government often fails to live up to its role as society’s agency for the defense of justice. It often violates rights and denies justice in the name of helping someone else. When it refuses to rectify the abuse, it justifies the delay as only fair to those who benefited from the initial violation.

88.

Our Self-Interest in a Good Society

How much serious thought do people give to what a good society entails? While there have been, and continue to be, utopian thinkers, their visions always require coercing others into a mold. Whenever these visions have managed to become a reality, the results have been abysmal. Other than these utopians and other meddlesome would-be controllers, most people give the matter almost no thought.

89.

Open versus Closed Minds

In our world, people agree on very little. One exception may be the high regard for having an open mind and the criticism against having a closed mind. Such rhetoric presumes that what we are open or closed to is the truth, but we are also routinely exposed to a great deal of nonsense, which is not good to be open to.

90.

The Love of Liberty

In “The Love of Liberty,” from his 1975 book of the same name, Leonard Read (1975b) addresses something very close to his heart. Because it was so central to Read’s whole enterprise, and because we live in an age that is very far from loving liberty, it is worth renewed attention.

Everyone loves liberty, so let’s clear the decks—make it possible! . . .

91.

Count Our Blessings, Not Miseries

It is a natural human tendency to focus on our problems, but the cost of doing so is to exaggerate their size relative to the blessings we benefit from. While those who advocate for liberty recognize the cornucopia of blessings it enables, they also see those liberties eroding and sometimes collapsing.

92.

Thank God for the Mess We’re In

Signs of trouble are often ignored until the situation is bad enough that it becomes impossible to keep doing so (unless one is mightily determined not to see them). Leonard Read gives much thought to the damage public policy has caused Americans. In “Thank God for the Mess We’re In” (Read 1975c), from the March 1975 issue of The Freeman, he reflects on how the mess we’ve made is so great that we might finally start thinking about how to undo the causes.

93.

Advancing Freedom in Freedom

If you were determined to get the word out about a product or an idea, how would you go about it?

There are many options if you’re not constrained by reality, honesty, or logic. You could, for instance, follow the pattern of most recent presidential campaigns. But if you want to communicate the truth, your options are more limited. Going after misrepresentations tooth and nail is one way, but what if you want to advance liberty?