BY MIKIO AKAGI

In print | Published November 11, 2004

And just like that, the election is over. Like many other Swatties, I find myself inclined to wallow in misery and fear, while consuming disproportionate quantities of fried food and contemplating the feasibility of moving abroad as quickly as possible. As a libertarian Swattie, however, the future is looking particularly grim.

First, not only does the Republican Party seem to be moving in the direction of the radical Christian right, pundits are saying that it’s the successful mobilization of these evangelicals that won the election for Mr. Bush. This observation suggests many things — that the Republicans, or indeed the Democrats, will become more secular in their rhetoric is not among them. To a libertarian, religious and moralistic legislation definitely seems like a bad thing, and this election is a foreboding indication of the future.

Second, I’m not the only person on this campus who is not thrilled about Bush’s attitudes toward law and order in our country and the world. Even in the economic realm, Bush’s policies do not reflect the hopes of libertarians — Bush may claim to believe in free trade, but his record includes erecting unfair benefits for corporations and raising steel tariffs (targeting Japanese steel companies — pardon my total lack of impartiality, but that isn’t going to make me happy) and a rash of government spending that makes even Democrats sweat.

Bush, however, should not be the only thing to worry about. He was, after all, re-elected (if not necessarily elected). What’s more, the Republicans have also been very successful in congressional and gubernatorial races around the country. Measures against gay marriage passed in landslides in each of the eleven states where they were proposed. The problem, in my view, is not Bush, nor is it the Republicans. It is, if you’ll forgive my libertarian ranting, the structure of the government itself.

When the constitution of our country was outlined, there was a very conscious effort made to limit the power our government could exercise over its citizens. Now, I’m not an unconditional fan of our constitution, but at bottom I think this particular aim was a good one. As a libertarian, I find it repugnant that individuals in the government can with any shred of legitimacy make laws permitting the secret search and seizure of property or concerning who can marry whom. Democracy was capable of killing Socrates, and even today it’s not sacred or perfect — frankly, it’s quite dangerous. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights are examples of checks placed on the power of voters and their representatives to make decisions about the lives of other people. Democracy was a tool to control politicians, whereas liberty was the great achievement of the American government. Now people increasingly view democracy as the key feature of American government, with liberty as a sometimes dispensable feature thereof.

I think it’s fine that the American people believe as they do. I even think it’s all right if Americans are mortified at terrorism or uncomfortable with the idea of gay marriage — there’s nothing inherently wrong or evil about these feelings, and, besides, over time I think society is becoming much more accepting. I do not think for a moment, though, that those who are uncomfortable should have any authority to limit the freedom of homosexuals or Arab-Americans or any other group of individuals. The problem is not that they want to do these things but that they can. Democracy, after all is not the greatest attribute of our society — liberty is — and the significance of this election is an indication to me that Americans are forgetting this fact.

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