Jonah Goldberg on Libertarianism vs. Libertinism

Home > Quotes

Jonah Goldberg on Libertarianism vs. Libertinism

Tuesday, September 27th, 2005 | Quotes |

“The conservative argument on most of these sorts of questions should be that if you are going to legalize a bad activity it is all the more incumbent upon civil society to condemn that activity. I want to keep smoking cigarattes legal (and I’m for decriminalizing marijuana) but I see almost nothing ideologically wrong with social condemnation of smoking and almost nothing right about celebrating it (I say almost, because at some point such condemnations cross the line into abject joylessness). Similarly, it is not illegal to be a slut, and rightly so. But I do not see this as a reason to celebrate sluttiness. Many libertarians agree with this and accept it. Some do not. They are rightly called libertines.”
– Jonah Goldberg

3 Comments to Jonah Goldberg on Libertarianism vs. Libertinism

Tam
September 27, 2005

It seems Mssr. Goldberg may have confused “libertarianism” with “prudishness”.

Les Jones
September 27, 2005

I agree with the gist of what he’s saying. It’s better for society for alcohol, tobacco and marijuana to be legal, but that doesn’t mean we have to pretend that those things are without negative consequences.

It’s like an XRLQ quote I saved: “The notion that government has no interest in discouraging any behavior it doesn’t (or shouldn’t) ban is beyond silly. Frankly, I’m not sure which I dread more: an authoritarian government that prohibits alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, adultery, strip joints, poor dietary habits or encouraging one’s kids to learn as little as possible in school, or a looneytarian one whose members feel duty bound to pretend there is nothing socially undesirable about any of these things.”