Libertarians were trending on Twitter again today. For the indoctrinated, this proves that edge-lording works. To the rest of us who value sanity, the Libertarian Party is turning into a cult right in front of us.
The reason Libertarians are trending on Twitter is not because of an offensive and racist Tweet from the Libertarian Party of New Hampshire. It’s trending because of the response.
At the time of my writing this, that post has just under 3,000 likes. Nina Turner’s response, on the other hand, is going viral.
This is racist and anti-Black. Period.
— Nina Turner (@ninaturner) July 19, 2023
In no way is advocating for free insulin comparable to chattel slavery.
Shameful & uneducated. pic.twitter.com/ad1jMJSdvw
The issue here is not policy but messaging. LPNH really believes that in order to convince more “normies” that positive rights are tantamount to chattel slavery, you simply must start by telling a black woman to pick crops.
If this was the plot of a movie, the audience would know who the bad guy was in five minutes. No need to put him in a black hat or give him a maniacal laugh.
The reactions are wide-ranging.
Some think this is sheer incompetence because even from a marketing standpoint it’s bad optics. Others think it’s trolling and merely insincere.
Most, though, are calling it what it is: racist.
These days, racism is often overt. Things like race realism, “blood and soil” populism, and historical revisionism have all been on full display in certain pockets of the Liberty movement. This has been well documented for anyone who will listen.
Overt racism doesn’t go very far on its own, however. Racism does, however, spread like wildfire when it involves a heavy amount of subterfuge. The rationalization for it always has a grain of truth, and it has been defended by LP National.
What is obvious to the normies still seems to escape so many “libertarians” in the movement.
LP National is leading by example here. They want followers of the LP to rationalize the racist Tweet. For some, you don’t have to tell them twice. They are practically tripping over themselves to do so.
They want to “educate” normies that are drawn like moths to a virtue-signaling flame. The LP wants to provoke outrage and it is being intentionally racist to do it. They believe—quite cynically—that the only way to have a conversation about positive rights is to evoke anger and hatred.
Let’s go deeper, though.
Yes, this Tweet is racist. Yes, the Meghan McCain Tweet was cruel. And yes, the LPKY Tweet was anti-Semitic. And yes, the irresponsible LPCO likely got banned because it condoned violence multiple times.
What is the point of all of this? The occupiers of the LP say it’s to get attention, and you can’t argue that it’s getting attention.
Why didn’t this logic apply to Gary Johnson, though? When he had his Aleppo gaffe, that also got attention. If all we wanted was attention, why did that bother these people at all?
It really is quite insidious what is going on here.
Here’s the truth: Some thought leaders in the Liberty movement have discovered that bigotry is useful.
The part that should truly concern everyone out there fighting for real Liberty is the degree to which ordinary activists are unwittingly participating in all of this.
Sometimes, it seems to play out like a cult leader having a private conversation with a concerned disciple that is questioning the teachings. Devoted followers may often feel lost when their leaders do and say bad things.
But they always make room in their corrupted hearts for rationalization. They must because it’s all they have.
They will long for some words that might calm their inflamed conscience. Because most people are rational, ordinary people will see things as they are. It is only when trusted titans of thought and action decide to speak that this natural process of critical thinking becomes corrupted.
The best part for a disciple is the feeling of superiority. A once-struggling follower only grows more devoted when they are granted permission to side with ugliness and hatred.
Then on top of that, cult leaders tell them that they are victims. They present them with evidence of their persecution. In case after case, the evidence shows that their tribe stands accused of providing safe harbor for bigotry.
“But you are not like that,” the cult leader tells the faithful disciple. “How could anyone call you a bigot? How could they?”
Those are very powerful words. For most, it’s probably even true.
A clearly racist Tweet like the one that trended today is a test. If an LP member’s instinct is not to condemn but to rationalize, then that person is in a cult.
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