This look back in laughter is brought to you by recent Facebook conversations with a member of the Libertarian Party, reminding me that nuance is all but an alien concept to idealogues – as is the ability to construct an argument without bringing out the usual array of logical fallacies in order to have a “win”.

The choice of billionaires everywhere

The party ran in the 2022 election on what it called its FREEDOM MANIFESTO. Now there’s a red flag already. Every mad bomber in history has had a “manifesto”.

But let’s open this Pandora’s Box of Freedom and see what goodies it contains. Might even be fun to compare 2022’s Manifesto to the wisdom of the party today.

The 2022 opening salvo.

Australia is in peril.

Typically when a nation faces a grave challenge it is because of international tension or an economic slump. The national trial we face is caused by a failure of political leadership. Our state and federal leaders from both major parties have proven themselves inept.

We will overcome this challenge and do so with strength, but we need real leadership.

Australia had the world’s fastest growing economy in the 20th century. Over the past decade however the major parties have abandoned the economic principles which delivered so much success. They still talk about low taxes and balanced budgets but in practice have become reform sloths.

The facts and figures (since this contains none)

As at 2022 when the Labor Party took over in a landslide:

Australia emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic as one of the strongest performers among Western and advanced economies, characterized by a rapid initial recovery in GDP and employment.

Australia was one of the first advanced nations to return to pre-pandemic levels of economic activity. By mid-2021, its GDP was 0.8% higher than in December 2019, outpacing the U.S., Canada, and most of Europe. Between 2019 and 2024, Australia’s cumulative growth of 11.1% outperformed the advanced economy average of 7.8%.

The recovery was driven by a strong jobs market. Unemployment fell below pre-pandemic levels to 3.7% by early 2023.

Australia was one of the few advanced economies to achieve consecutive budget surpluses (2022-23 and 2023-24). Its gross debt-to-GDP ratio (approx. 60%) remains significantly lower than that of the U.S. (120%+) and Japan (260%+).

So much for the Libertarian scaremongering on the economy.

It then goes on to quote Ronald Reagan:

Government is not the solution to our problems, government is the problem.

Reagan, whose economic miracle, Trickle Down Theory excelerated the wealth divide. It wasn’t a Trickle Down. It was a Golden Shower.

Then we get back to the main game of 2022. Covid disinformation.

Their extraordinary over-reaction to COVID has only magnified our accumulating economic woes. In the name of ‘zero-COVID’ we have doubled an already dangerously high commonwealth debt. Misplaced COVID hysteria has violated what many assumed were inviolable civil liberties. When citizens fear the police more than the virus, we have a crisis. We are now internationally infamous for going further down this dark COVID path than any other nation.

Australian federal politics needs a radical jolt.

The Libertarians have advocated for citizen-trusting, freedom-loving and small government policies since 2001. We aim to cultivate a society of peace and prosperity based on individual freedom, personal responsibility, private property rights and voluntary association. This Freedom Manifesto outlines our priorities for the coming federal election.

If you like these policies, consider helping the cause.

The over-reaction that saved countless lives, and saved the economy, taking it to pre-pandemic heights.

Let’s now have a look at some the policy platforms

Freedom of speech is fundamental in a democratic society. The free exchange of ideas and opinions allows these ideas and opinions to be tested, with the more robust being accepted. Speech that is agreeable and popular is protected by default. The most important function of free speech is to protect unpopular speech.

Continued government attacks on free speech because it is “offensive” or “hate speech” simply shrink the window of allowable opinion and set a precedent for further, even more puritanical censorship. This is awful for democracy and the pursuit of a free society – it harms both the people being censored and those people who are denied the right to hear forbidden words.

• A free speech constitutional amendment. Free speech is too important to be left to the whim of politicians. The Libertarians would campaign to add the following to the Australian Constitution: “Parliament shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
  
• Abolish Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act, and all similar legislation. Legislation such as 18C makes it unlawful to “offend, insult or humiliate”, and hauls those who fall foul of it up before secret kangaroo courts, headed by bureaucrats at the Australian Human Rights Commission. It is a gross affront to free speech and the idea of a fair trial.
  
• Stop internet censorship. A decade and a half ago the consensus in the West was that it was necessary to censor radical propaganda, but this has led to an internet filter consisting of thousands of blocked websites for a wide range of reasons. Some of these may be well intentioned, but putting this power in the hands of government can rapidly turn into the banning of anything that does not suit their political agenda.
  
• Encourage a free and open internet. Much of the increasingly political censorship imposed by tech companies is done in fear of further regulation being targeted at them to tackle “misinformation” or “fake news”. This is particularly true in Australia where platforms and page owners can be held liable for what is posted by other users. A clear framework of no internet censorship by the government would take away much of the incentive for tech companies to censor their own content.

So… in 2022, it was all in favor of freedom of assembly. An important thing in a democracy.

But then Bondi happened in 2025, after Netanyahu warned the Australian government that recognizing a Paestinian State and allowing pro-Palestinian protests wuld lead to a terrorist attack against Jews in this country. The war criminal has amazing psychic powers.

This has caused the Libertarians severe cognitive dissonance.

Blindly pro-Israel on the one hand. Freedom of assembly as a rigid party plank on the other. And never the twain shall meet when it comes to the question of Palestine. Watching the Mad Hatters in the Libertarian Party trying to navigate this dilemma has been fun to watch. In the same way that rage-baiting by Sky News can be fun to watch — in small doses.

A related policy from 2022 has the same 2025 aftertaste of flatulance and rotting fish.

Freedom from Surveillance 2022

Terrorism and criminal organisations are real problems. However, the government’s response to indiscriminately spy on Australians is disproportionate to the risk. Likewise, the government’s mass surveillance laws enable warrantless access to data, grant the government access to private organisations’ networks, and enable government to take over Australians’ online accounts.

Government mass surveillance has steadily grown, especially after 9/11. Mass surveillance laws aren’t justified, are often rushed through parliament without scrutiny, and treat Australians as guilty without evidence. These laws concentrate too much power in the hands of politicians and bureaucrats.

• No digital identity laws. Australians should be free to buy and sell and contract with each other, and free to move around and communicate with each other, without having to “show their papers” and without intrusive governments tracking their every move.
  
• Abolish mass surveillance laws. Mass surveillance laws are an unnecessary invasion of privacy and have expanded excessively over recent decades. Whenever people can be made to be fearful, the government grabs even more power and money, which they never voluntarily relinquish.
  
• Stop government hacking and seizure. The government can add, copy, delete or alter data on Australians’ devices, take over online accounts, and gain access to private networks. These powers are unnecessary and enable the government to plant evidence on Australians.
  
• Devolution of surveillance laws to states and territories. After 9/11, surveillance laws were federalised, granting the federal government too much power over Australians. A return to states and territories handling surveillance laws distributes and dilutes power, ensuring Australians aren’t indiscriminately targeted.
  
• Stop the collection of metadata. Despite government promises, metadata collection has expanded to local councils. The collection of metadata treats Australians as guilty without having committed a crime.
  
• Require warrants for targeted surveillance of individual Australians. Surveillance must only occur after a warrant has been approved for specific individuals. The judicial system is an important bulwark against government overreach.
  
• No cash bans. Cash bans enable government surveillance by forcing Australians to pay for goods and services with traceable bank-issued payment methods (e.g., debit cards). To protect privacy, Australians must be able to trade with each other without government surveillance.
  
• Stop attacks on encryption. The government continually attempts to undermine encryption through laws that weaken security and promotes backdoors. Australians must be able to talk to each other without surveillance.
  
• Focus government on improving its own cyber security. The government regularly fails its own cyber security audits. Improvement is required to avoid foreign governments compromising government systems. The effort the government spends spying on Australians is better spent protecting Australians.
  
• Free Assange. Julian Assange alerted the world to the dangerous power of the State in the age of the internet. We will advocate for his immediate release and repatriation.

Come 2025 and Bondi, according to Israel and therefore to the Libertarian Party, becomes a surveilance blunder. Oh dear.

I would have a permanent migraine trying to carry this much cognitive dissonance.

They are a truly sad bunch.

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