Most people are libertarians and do not even know it. I say that very sincerely, I believe that most people's ideology falls into that of the Libertarian Party. By showing what libertarians believe, and what most people hold as their own political stances, I believe that most people would agree that their political beliefs are not those of the Republican or Democratic party, but rather of the up-and-coming Libertarian Party.

I am a libertarian, it took me many years to realize this. For years, I believed I was a Republican because my parents were. Then as I got older, I felt that the Democratic party was the best way to take care of those who have been left behind by society. My Christian beliefs of charity, love, and compassion motivated and directed my beliefs that those who had more should give more to help those who had less. I still believe this, what makes it different is that this time I believe that those who have more should do so voluntarily, and not by force. That is what makes me a libertarian. Libertarianism, at its simplest form, emphasizes liberty. Social liberty: the ability to do what you please as long as it does not affect anyone else. Economic liberty: the desire to control and have ownership of as much of the money you earn as possible. In the most basic form, that is libertarianism.

I realize that most people would consider themselves as members of the big two parties, or independents. When I talk to people about why they belong to the party they claim, republicans usually say that they believe in lower taxes and less government spending. Democrats say that they think that everyone should have the choice to make their own decisions in life. What is so appealing about libertarianism is that they mesh these two ideas.

Socially, we believe that if you are not hurting anybody, your decisions are your own. If someone wants to get married to a member of their own gender, while I personally disagree, it is their decision to make. If someone wants to not wear their seatbelt, why should they be punished for doing so? The government will give two hundred dollar tickets for not wearing a seat belt because it poses a risk. Yet, for buying a carton of cigarettes, which certainly causes damage, there is no punishment. If the decisions of others do not affect you, then they are none of your business.

Economically, the money you earn should be given to you in its fullest amount. We believe that as little taxes should be taken as possible. The money you earn is yours, not a gift from the government. You are entitled to the most of what you earn. We also believe that the government has grown to an unstable size, and thus needs to take more and more money constantly to stay afloat (which it does not). Right now the government operates with more departments, bureaus, agencies than is necessary. The size of the government grows and grows, and with it, our taxes rise.

The central argument I get with libertarianism is that it does not take care of the poor and downtrodden. This is both true and false. If libertarians got our way, it is true that many government welfare programs would fail and dissolve. But, in their place would step something more beautiful--voluntary generosity. The reason I left the democratic party is that I realized that forcing someone to give part of their income to the poor through higher taxes is not generosity, it is theft. Plain and simple. The idea that those who have more should be forced to give more is nothing more than disguised theft. Americans today are taxed anywhere from 10% up to 39.6%. For those in the top income bracket, being taxed nearly 40% does not leave a lot for charitable giving. Many have the idea that if the government takes care of them, there is no need for giving, but in fact, if citizens got to keep more of what they earned, then the wallets would be looser and giving hearts would be overflowing. Before the government had a takeover of the welfare system, churches, families and private citizens took care of the poor. But with the generous benefits of today's welfare state can prompt people to take their time looking for a job. Of course, this is not the norm, but, when welfare benefits are too generous, more people sign up.

Libertarianism is not evil, it is not selfish, it is not cruel. Libertarianism is the most generous, most mature, most responsible answer to our political query. If you fall into the category of believing that lower taxes and less government spending is beneficial to the economy and that you are responsible for only your life choices, congratulations you may be a libertarian.