|  Ask
writer Bill Kauffman to describe his political beliefs, and he's liable
to tell you that he's "an old-fashioned decentralist antiwar patriot."
Or he might tell you that he's a "place-ist" -- someone who
encourages people to put down roots, buy locally, and appreciate the
uniqueness of their chosen hometown. But underneath those labels beats
the heart of a libertarian.
Kauffman's support for liberty is obvious from his writing and from
his resume; he was an assistant editor at Reason, wrote for
the Cato Institute, and contributed to Liberty magazine. He
also wrote essays for The Independent (U.K.), CounterPunch,
and The Wall Street Journal. Some of his more piquant libertarian
observations include:
* On the War on Terrorism: "The Office of Homeland Security. Has
a nice retro-Soviet ring to it, eh? Or how about Operation Infinite
Justice, the Orwell-by-way-of-Madison-Avenue moniker that Pentagon image-makers
first hung on our nascent World War Three? When the propagandists adopt
phrases plucked from dystopian novels, we're in trouble." -- The
Independent (November 11, 2001)
* On the NEA: "The Founding Fathers never envisioned federal sponsorship
of the arts. American artists do not need a ministry of culture. Our
writers and painters and dramatists and musicians have flourished when
government has ignored them. We don't want subsidy. We don't want censorship.
We just want to be left alone." -- Cato Policy Analysis
(August 8, 1990)
* On the Bush Administration: "As the American Empire staggers
into senseless senescence, what patriot, whether populist, reactionary,
or just cantankerously American, isn't being radicalized by a Cheney-Bush
state that bids to make FDR's reign look like an edenic age of flower-power
pacifism and carefree liberty?" -- Chronicles (June 2003)
Kauffman has also written six books, including Dispatches from the
Muckdog Gazette (2003), the novel Every Man a King (1989);
America First! Its History, Culture, and Politics (1995); and
With Good Intentions? Reflections on the Myth of Progress in America
(1998).
Two of those books are worth noting for their libertarian themes: His
novel, Every Man a King, is about a young man who works for
a revered U.S. Senator, is destroyed by the cynicism and hypocrisy of
politics, and retreats to an upstate New York town to build a real life.
(Autobiographical alert: Kauffman once worked as a legislative assistant
to U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan. He later describe it as an
"anarchist-making" experience.)
Kauffman's book, With Good Intentions?, explored past battles
over child labor laws, a standing army, school consolidation, and the
Interstate Highway System. World magazine (November 28, 1998)
said the book showcased Kauffman's support for "decentralization.
He argues that families should be left alone, government pushed back,
and communities not be plowed under to fit the whims of idealistic planners."
Kauffman is now an associate editor for The American Enterprise.
He writes the magazine's "Flashback" column about forgotten
aspects of American history.
-- Bill Winter |
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Quotable
"I
would dismantle the empire. I'd slash the war budget. I'd bring the
troops home. I'd abolish the vast majority of federal programs. I'd
knock down most of the edifices in Washington. And I'd devolve power
to where it ought to reside -- in communities, in individuals, in neighborhoods."
-- Bill Kauffman on PBS's Think Tank (March 21, 1996)
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