Libertarianism Quotes

“In real markets, agents make bad choices. They are often ignorant, misinformed, and irrational. Yet, markets tend to punish agents for making bad choices, and they tend to learn from their mistakes. For instance, if you fail to pay your bills, your credit rating declines and you have a harder time getting loans. If you fail to do research and buy an unreliable car, you suffer from repair bills. In contrast, when people in government make bad choices, the political process almost never punishes them. Studies show that voters are terrible at retrospective voting—they do not know whom to blame for bad government—and so politicians are not punished for making bad choices.”
― Jason Brennan, Libertarianism: What Everyone Needs to Know®

“Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations was in large part a critique of imperialism. We often associate opposition to imperialism with Marxism and the Left, but Smith was an outspoken critic of imperialism long before Marx.”
― Jason Brennan, Libertarianism: What Everyone Needs to Know®

“The typical undergraduate microeconomics textbook describes cases where markets are unlikely to produce efficient outcomes. These textbooks often claim that, in principle, government intervention could solve the market failure. However, these textbooks also assume that government both (1) has full information about how to solve the problem and (2) has the good faith to use its power to solve the problem. It is as if the textbooks say omniscient angels can intervene to solve market failures. Thus, when undergraduate textbooks recommend government intervention, they mean intervention by idealized governments, not necessarily by real governments. In the real world, libertarians believe, sometimes the best response to serious market failure is just to suck it up and live with it.”
― Jason Brennan, Libertarianism: What Everyone Needs to Know®

“Each of us has our own life to lead. So long as we respect others’ rights, we must be permitted to live as we see fit.”
― Jason Brennan, Libertarianism: What Everyone Needs to Know®

“In light of all this, imagine you are a congressperson. You hear many cries for help. These cries for help only come in the form of spending requests. No one ever asks you not to spend. It is easy to believe you hurt no one by spending. The victims of overspending are unseen. So, contrary to the stereotype, libertarians do not believe all politicians are selfish. Libertarians often think that politicians are inept, counterproductive do-gooders. Still, the stereotype is partly right. Libertarians do believe government tends to attract bad people. Libertarians believe that in politics, the worst often get on top.”
― Jason Brennan, Libertarianism: What Everyone Needs to Know®