Libertarian Party of West Virginia

Everyone knows that health care costs are soaring every year, making medical bills and insurance unaffordable for many. No relief is in sight with the health care bills being considered in Congress, which are estimated to cost us at least $1 trillion over the next 10 years. Given government’s abysmal record in estimating costs, we should expect to pay much more.

Judging from what has happened in other nations with “universal health care,” many of us, seniors especially, will die waiting for treatment. Health care is so expensive that there is only so much to go around; it has to be rationed.

But why is health care so expensive? Why does it cost so much more every year?

The health care industry is one of the most highly regulated in the country. These regulations drive up costs enormously. About 80% of the costs of new drugs, for example, are due to regulations that are intended to make them safer. In practice, however, these regulations cause millions of premature deaths by adding 10 years to the drug development time of life-saving drugs and favoring new, expensive drugs over nutrients and older pharmaceuticals with good safety records.

Very few nutritional supplements are put through the FDA testing process. Consequently, manufacturers are banned from advertising their products to doctors. Lovaza, a prescription fish oil supplement, is one of the few exceptions. Even with their insurance company paying most of the cost, patients pay almost as much for Lovaza through their co-pay as they would for virtually identical over-the-counter pharmaceutical grade fish oil at the same drug store! Continue Reading »

[A Failure of Capitalism: The Crisis of '08 and the Descent into Depression • By Richard Posner • Harvard University Press (2009) • 368 pages]

With his latest book, A Failure of Capitalism, Richard Posner has lived up to his oft-maligned reputation as a provocateur. Coming from a man who is the founder of the law-and-economics movement and an elected member of the Mont Pelerin Society, the sensational declaration that capitalism has failed will surely raise eyebrows. But Posner’s musings, besides being premature, too often reek of false starts and gross prevarications.

We libertarians should commend Posner, one of the most original thinkers of our time, for his longstanding rejection of groupthink and for his refusal to conform to hackneyed ideologies. Nevertheless, we must also bid him farewell. This latest book, a career about-face, will do little to help those affected by the crisis. It will even hurt them further.

Posner suggests that, rather than euphemize, we call a spade a spade: the financial downturn is a depression, not merely a crisis. He insists on the unpalatable term “depression” because the current troubles far exceed any modest slump of recent decades and have precipitated government intervention unrivaled since the Great Depression. Posner is probably right on this score. Continue Reading »

Many libertarians have joined the DownsizeDC organization, and through them, frequently email our US Senators and Representatives advising them on how they should vote. One recent email was sent concerning the pending health care bill now before the Senate. Senators Byrd and Rockefeller have responded to this email on health care. Senator Byrd justifies his position on this bill with the following statement: “I have always believed that access to quality, affordable health care is the inherent right of every citizen.” Senator Rockefeller justifies his position on this bill with the following statement: “When I first began my career in public service, I learned a valuable lesson: health care is a right and should not merely be a privilege.” The full text of their responses can be read below. Therefore, both Senators believe there is an individual right to health care.

Where does a right like this come from? We have a Bill of Rights in the US Constitution but there is no reference an individual right to health care. The other document that declares an individual’s rights is the Declaration Of Independence. In that Declaration, we have certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. No mention of a right to health care. Continue Reading »

WASHINGTON – The Libertarian Party (LP) today expressed its opposition to the Afghanistan war plans announced by President Barack Obama last night.

Wes Benedict, Executive Director of the LP, said, “Rush Limbaugh should buy Obama a nice cigar. The liberal president has done exactly what the conservative leader wanted: escalate the war.”

William Redpath, Chairman of the Libertarian National Committee (LNC), commented, “This is further evidence that the differences between Republicans and Democrats are, at most, rhetorical. This president, whose votes made him the most liberal member of the U.S. Senate, has just announced an escalation of a foreign war. His campaign promise of ‘Change’ now sounds a lot more hollow.”

Redpath continued, “Some congressional Democrats may make a rhetorical show of opposing Obama’s decision, but that is all it will be. Obama is guaranteed to get the additional troops and funding that he wants.” Continue Reading »

September 24th and 25th, the G20 will be meeting in Pittsburgh, PA.  This meeting will be chaired by President Obama.  The Libertarian Party of West Virginia, in conjunction with the Libertarian Party Anarchist Caucus will be hosting protests at this event. Libertarians should be out on the front-lines fighting tyranny.  This evil group, meeting to set economic policies that will benefit themselves to all of our detriment, will be in our own back yard this September.  Let’s give them the reception they deserve.  Make your voices heard, be bold, and don’t miss this historic opportunity to stand up against the international banking cartels that are bankrupting America and bankrupting your children!

If you’re interested in attending, please RSVP to the event on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=149076128905.

Tags: g20, g20 summit, libertarian party, lp anarchist caucus, lpac, lpwv, pittsburgh, pittsburgh g20, pittsburgh g20 summit, west virginia

LPWV bottles of wine, from one of West Virginia’s top wineries (Forks of Cheat) is now available. Currently, we have blackberry wine available and if this is successful then more varieties will be forthcoming. A bottle of wine will be sent to anyone who requests it and makes a contribution of $30 or more (not including regular membership dues) and requests it, while supplies last. Assuming that this is successful we will procure more wines in different varieties and continue this special fundraiser! If you do decide to contribute and you wish to receive a bottle of wine, please remember to specify a shipping address or you can pick it up here in Morgantown if you’d like.

I hope you’ll consider trying one of West Virginia’s best wines and contribute to support the LPWV!

Tags: lpwv, wine

The federal government is currently mulling over a healthcare plan based largely upon Governor Romney’s implementation at the state level in Massachusetts.  It will force individuals to pay either (at least) $2,000 for health insurance, or a $1,000 fine for non-compliance to the government each year.  That’s $1,000 – $2,000 worth of food off the tables of our poorest citizens.  We at the LPWV see this as another way in which government oppresses the most vulnerable individuals and families in our state, and staunchly oppose this plan. It’s important to note that most people who support this plan have never been poor themselves, or if they have, have lost sight of the reality of living paycheck to paycheck without an extra several thousand dollars to throw around for health insurance or to pay fines for not having any!

The original source for many of the following ideas presented herein is a Wall Street Journal op-ed written by John Mackey.  You can read his entire piece here.  These are ideas which can be used to create a better system which truly empowers consumers.  They apply to government, healthcare providers, and patients.  We really liked a lot of what Mr. Mackey came up with, so we’re using it as the basis for this list.

• Remove the legal obstacles that slow the creation of high-deductible health insurance plans and health savings accounts (HSAs). The combination of high-deductible health insurance and HSAs is one solution that could solve many of our health-care problems.

• Equalize the tax laws so that that employer-provided health insurance and individually owned health insurance have the same tax benefits. Now employer health insurance benefits are fully tax deductible, but individual health insurance is not. This is unfair.

• Repeal all state laws which prevent insurance companies from competing across state lines. We should all have the legal right to purchase health insurance from any insurance company in any state and we should be able use that insurance wherever we live. Health insurance should be portable.

• Repeal government mandates regarding what insurance companies must cover. These mandates have increased the cost of health insurance by billions of dollars. What is insured and what is not insured should be determined by individual customer preferences and not through special-interest lobbying.

• Make costs transparent so that consumers understand what health-care treatments cost. How many people know the total cost of their last doctor’s visit and how that total breaks down? What other goods or services do we buy without knowing how much they will cost us?

• Enact Medicare reform. We need to face up to the actuarial fact that Medicare is heading towards bankruptcy and enact reforms that create greater patient empowerment, choice and responsibility.

• Finally, revise tax forms to make it easier for individuals to make a voluntary, tax-deductible donation to help the millions of people who have no insurance and aren’t covered by Medicare, Medicaid or the State Children’s Health Insurance Program.

Written by Matt D. Harris, LPWV Chairman

A discussion recently came up on facebook related to running for office.  Specifically, I brought up that I, and many other Libertarians, are willing to vote for “Ron Paul Republicans.”  Of course, I would highly advocate that anyone considering a run for office would do so as a Libertarian and not a Republican, regardless of their fondness for Ron Paul.  I’m personally quite fond of him in fact, as a scholar, a gentleman, and a statesman.  The crux of the discussion turned to the nature of electoral politics and statistics related to electoral success.  We’d be lying not to admit that each year, more Republicans are elected to office than Libertarians, and some people would consider that statistic alone enough evidence to support the notion that one should run as a Republican instead of a Libertarian in order to have a higher chance of winning their election.  Unfortunately, that statistic alone is not only not all the information, it in fact misses what may be the most important piece of information.

When looking at the crop of young, enthusiastic “Ron Paul Republican” candidates who ran in the 2008 election cycle, one very important statistic becomes clear – they’ve got something in common with Dr. Paul’s presidential run, and that is that they overwhelmingly lost their primary races to other Republican candidates.  Even in Paul’s home district, where he’s held his congressional seat for 10 terms, the Republican establishment continues to unsuccessfully throw opposition his way in the primaries.  Those campaigns are following a trend towards more and more mud-slinging and negative campaigning on the part of those challengers, as well.  I see this as a yet another example of rejection of Dr. Paul’s ideas by the Republican Party establishment.

Furthermore, since a general election campaign often gets vastly more media exposure than a primary election campaign, this can make it more effective to run as a Libertarian just so that you have the opportunity to mount a general election campaign. Many “Ron Paul Republicans” ended up with little or no mainstream media exposure once they were eliminated in the GOP primaries.

So if you’re considering a run for office, remember to consider all of the important statistics.  Also, don’t forget who your friends – and your opponents – are.  The Libertarian Party of West Virginia is the rightful home of true libertarians of all stripes from our great state.

Tags: democrat, dp, elections, gop, libertarian, lp, republican, running for office

1. Easily one of the most disingenuous politicians I have ever heard speak. It did not feel like anything that came out of his mouth was close to the truth.

2. On numerous occasions Mollohan claimed the bill was a victory for the free market. Yeah, I am still figuring that one out also. In his words, since this bill allows consumers to shop around (supposedly) then they have free market decisions. I am not even going to waste my time proving how many different ways this comment was wrong. Any semi-intelligent person will recognize it for what it was.

3. Mollohan appeared clueless as to what HR 3200 actually contained. No less than five times he said, “the bill is changing by the minute.” When pressed with a tough decision he simply used the previous excuse. Continue Reading »