Figuring Glenn Beck

Miscellaneous General
1

I have been sporadically following Glenn Beck for the two years and have mixed feelings about him. On one hand, he is one of the few major media talk show hosts (come to think of it, the only one) whose ideology I’ve seen and change for the better before my very eyes. He’s certainly superior to Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Bill O’Reilly, and Lou Dobbs.

On the other hand, having him associated with “libertarianism” might to harm to our cause by diluting the message and making it appear to be quasi-neoconservative. I’m with Walter Block in that I consider libertarianism neither of the right nor the left. If we must use that paradigm, then I consider myself equally far from both. I would prefer to do away with that paradigm altogether, however.

To be fair, there are Rothbardian libertarians, Hayekian libertarians, Randian libertarians, Hoppean libertarians, Chicagoite Friedman libertarians (gulp), et al. Why can’t there be Beckian libertarians (other than that it sounds funny)?

I would have laughed at such a notion two years ago. Now, I’m not so sure. I was floored to see him have two LvMI scholars (Tom Woods and Yuri Maltsev) on his show, not to mention that the entire show was about Hayek’s classic Road to Serfdom. He even mentioned Ayn Rand several times throughout the program. You won’t see Sean Hannity do that.

See it here.

p.s. There are several other issues about Beck that I want to get to, but I’ll save those for when this thread starts to lose steam. This post is getting too long anyway.

2

There is no libertarian intellectual called Beck.

3

Yeah I’m with you on this. I don’t know how I feel. I have a lot of left-liberal friends who obviously can’t stand him, and now that he is espousing more libertarian views (in his typically over-the-top, melodramatic style) they are beginning to associate libertarianism with him and be turned off by it. True, they shouldn’t dismiss a political ideology just because they don’t like one of its proponents, but when you really can’t stand someone, you are less likely to want to listen to that person. He just rubs too many people the wrong way.

I have spent the last year denying to people that he is a libertarian. I had always suspected he was a strategy move by the right wing to co-opt and water down the libertarian movement, using it to the advantage of the Republican Party. To be honest, though, lately I have been having my doubts about this view. He does seem a little more genuine than before. The jury is still out, and the real test will be how he behaves if a Republican gets in the White House.

Napolitano, on the other hand, seems pretty rock solid to me.

4

Beck ventures off into religous-right lala-land a bit too much for me. I think he’s catering to an audience with that, but who knows? Maybe he really believes America was founded by God or whatever that was he was spewing.

Some of what he says really does make sense.

5

Speaking of Napolitano, he had Beck on his second Fox Business Network show and made it very clear that he (Napolitano) wanted Beck to be part of the libertarian movement. He also got Beck to say “In message [whatever that means], I am more Ron Paul than Sarah Palin.”

I’m not defending Beck. I’m just playing Devil’s advocate.

6

Even if he doesn’t convince the liberals, he brings libertarian ideas to the masses and that’s a good thing. But unquestionably, I’m with you on it creating a bad association with us… no idea what the right answer is.

I’m glad he talks to the people about small government ideals though, no?

7

Well, more so than most conservative talk show hosts. He has made a wishy-washy endorsement of marijuana legalization (though for non-libertarian reasons) and the abolition of a number of intrusive federal bureaucracies such as the DOE. He occasionally talks about the Fed. That said, I’ve heard him praise groups like Focus on the Family and the Parents Television Council, which lobby the FCC to sensor programming they deem objectionable. Beck is also pretty bad on foreign policy (though not as bad as Limbaugh or Hannity to be sure). He remains an ardent immigration restrictionist and anti free trade, anti globalist protectionist.

8

Well, the way I see it is this: libertarianism is not just a sudden switch a person makes. It’s a process, a journey. Before I really became a libertarian, I was kind of in the same ideological place as Glenn is–i.e. calling myself libertarian but still clinging to some of my neoconservative fallacies. Yet the name itself is important and as I began to dig into things and look into things, I became more and more radically libertarian until I became the anarcho-capitalist I am today.

Glenn, I think, has what is necessary to become a true libertarian: an open mind (after all, he’s changed his views more than once) and a desire to try and learn. While I doubt he’s going to become outright anarchistic–he’s got too much of a fetish for the Constitution–he may very well continue to grow more libertarian. Hopefully Napolitano will be a good influence on him and his starting off with Road to Serfdom will lead him to further look into the Austrian school.

Also, I highly HIGHLY doubt he’s just some schill for the Republicans. Frankly, I don’t credit the Republicans the cunning to pull off such an intricate plan. Besides, even if I don’t hold the same views as Beck, I DO believe in his sincerity.

9

The problem that I see with Beck is his inconsistency.

Nobodies perfect, but I wouldn’t trust a media figure with the truth. Never. Especially a mainstream figure.

What I believe will happen, is that his fanbase will follow him wherever he goes. And because they fail to think for themselves, they will be lead into a trap.

10

I find it disappointing that many people don’t give Glenn Beck a chance before watching or listening to him. His shows do make a lot of sense, and people could learn a lot from the things he says. I am quite envious of his research team too.

11

Fox got the green light to promote libertarianism and pound the beejeezus out of the Obama Administration. So they are. You can rest assured that once a Republican gets back in office, some of this stuff will get a free pass.

That said, Beck has come a long way, as has Alex Jones. Beck has become less statist, and Jones has become less about conspiracy and more about super limited government. In fact, Jones is becoming so minarchist, that most of his liberal anti-market guests don’t fit on his show any more. It’s fun to see the transformations going on.

We should all concern ourselves with what we’re doing to improve our lives and the lives of those we love. What Beck does, or what Obama does, or what Ron Paul does, doesn’t excuse us from doing whatever it is we feel we should be doing.

If Beck or Alex Jones or Obama or Ron Paul or whoever is not doing a good job, there is a market opportunity for someone to step in and do a better one. The mentality of petitioning people, businesses, or the state to improve is operating within the statist paradigm and with a statist mentality.

Compete, compete, compete. That is how the market works, and no force, be it state, church, business or demagogue can overcome the inevitability of the market. If we all compete there is nothing that can stop ideas whose time has come. If we sit on our hands and style ourselves as quasi-expert libertarian movement critics and commentators, we shall endure many generations of increasingly repressive statism.

12

@ liberty student:

If Ron Paul were to become president, who do you think think would be his main adversary in the media: the left due to his free market beliefs or the right due to his states’ rights beliefs (as opposed to socially conservative beliefs)?

13

I think it is impossible he will ever be President. The right and the left are the same thing to me (and I suspect Ron Paul). It is a false paradigm.

14

If you had to vote for either Republican or Democrat, which would you choose, and why?

Assuming (just for this hypothetical) that the Democrats will push for a completely government-run market and the Republicans will impose a lot of social laws on the federal level? Should economic issues be more important than social issues? I feel like a society can’t be free if it’s economy is in the tank, especially when our debt is being bought up by a communist regime.

15

You mean, if someone put a gun to my head? I might still not vote. They would have to put a gun to the head of my family members. So under that circumstance, I would vote for the caucasian. The male. The taller one. The fatter one. The older one. The more religious. The one with the better singing voice.

In other words, if I was coerced to make a decision I would not make of free will, it’s completely irrelevant what I choose.

Isn’t economy a social issue? Isn’t human action economic and social? What could be more social than exchange?

A society can’t be free if its economy is in the tank, I agree. The economy is in the tank due to the government.

16

That’s exactly what I was thinking. Maybe Beck is only being pseudo-libertarian because there is a Democrat majority in Congress and a Democrat president. He might revert back to his old ways as soon as Republicans get in.

QFT

17

As far as major cable news personalities go, Beck is obviously the only one even mentioning most of the important issues… not that that’s saying much, since all the rest are complete apologists for the state.

I used to listen to him semi-regularly until I finally got tired of his inconsistency/repetitiveness/emotionality, after which I still tuned in occasionally until I heard the Medina interview which pissed me off (and I’m not even a 9/11 Truther) and I haven’t listened to him since.

I will say, though, that I don’t think he’s a Republican plant. Also, I will credit him with the way that he is constantly urging people to read and learn about freedom for themselves, and how he says he stays up late at night reading. Before I found libertarianism, I had really slacked off on reading since I was an underground, and I think Beck is 100% right-on that we need to make ourselves more informed of history, politics, and economics or else we are doomed to continue to be exploited by the elites.

18

The “9 Principles, 12 Values” of Beck’s 9/12 Project:

The 9 Principles

1. America Is Good.

What is America? The geopolitical landmass known as the United States of America? Is he saying the land is fertile and beautiful? This is true enough. More likely, however, he means that the American government is good. Hardly a libertarian statement.

2. I believe in God and He is the Center of my Life.

God “The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained.” from George Washington’s first Inaugural address.

As an atheist, I disagree. That said, people are free to believe (or not) in whatever mythology they choose, it’s no concern of mine as long as they don’t force it on me. Being that this is a political organization, however, it strikes me that the 9/12ers will try to use the violent intermediary of the state to force their beliefs on society (qua the “Moral Majority”)

3. I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday.

Honesty “I hope that I shall always possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider to be the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.” George Washington

Sounds good to me.

4. The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.

Marriage/Family “It is in the love of one’s family only that heartfelt happiness is known. By a law of our nature, we cannot be happy without the endearing connections of a family.” Thomas Jefferson

I know plenty of happy, single people (myself included). But again, if these people want to go and get married, it is no concern of mine…unless they bring the state into it with marriage licenses, tax benefits/exemptions for married couples, etc.

5. If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.

Justice “I deem one of the essential principles of our government… equal and exact justice to all men of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political.” Thomas Jefferson

I’m all for equality under the law. This principle, however, is more likely interpreted by conservatives to place the “law” (i.e., statutes made by legislators) on some sort of pedestal. Cue the “It’s the law!” argument against free immigration. There is a such thing as bad law that warrants civil disobedience, e.g., drug laws, immigration laws, and gun control laws.

6. I have a right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.

Life, Liberty, & The Pursuit of Happiness “Everyone has a natural right to choose that vocation in life which he thinks most likely to give him comfortable subsistence.” Thomas Jefferson

No beef here.

7. I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable.

Charity “It is not everyone who asketh that deserveth charity; all however, are worth of the inquiry or the deserving may suffer.” George Washington

Ditto.

8. It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion.

On your right to disagree “In a free and republican government, you cannot restrain the voice of the multitude; every man will speak as he thinks, or more properly without thinking.” George Washington

Can’t argue with that.

9. The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.

Who works for whom? “I consider the people who constitute a society or a nation as the source of all authority in that nation.” Thomas Jefferson

A common myth. A coercive monopoly doesn’t work for anyone—it exploits everyone.

The 12 Values

* Honesty

* Reverence

* Hope

* Thrift

* Humility

* Charity

* Sincerity

* Moderation

* Hard Work

* Courage

* Personal Responsibility

* Gratitude

Well, the Keynesians may not like thrift, but other than that, this list isn’t exactly controversial.

19

I believe that Beck’s association with us is a horrible thing. I understand that Libertarian values need to be spread as wide as possible, but I don’t think the associations he brings help us in any way. His audience will not appreciate what the Libertarian idea of Liberty represents. In my opinion they see it as a nationalist thing, which is about as far from the truth as you can get. I recently wrote a short article about spreading the ideas of Libertarianism and what to avoid, endorsements like Beck’s are one of those things.

Article available here: http://abjectdogma.com/articles/war_of_words.asp

20

I used to think he was moving towards true Libertariansim, but I’m not so sure now. I know it’s a process, it took me a few years, but I don’t see him making a true transition any time soon. He is far too Nationalistic/Patriotic and far too invested in the Founders and the Constitution for him to make any more progress. His following won’t go with him.

Just look at his 8/28 project of “Restoring Honor” sponsored by the Special Operations Warrior Foundation. Ya, he’s a neo-con statist, through and through.