Libertarian Party Convention

Knowing that the Dems will be rocking Denver's Pepsi Center (that house that Sakic built) and the Reps will be setting up shop in St. Paul (Wellstone territory), it was for a grin that I peaked in on Multi-Purpose Room B at the airport Sheraton where the Libertarians were holding their big powwow. C-Span covered it with all their energy but this just wasn't a TV friendly concoction.

Since the Indy 500 failed to grab me (I'm not a rabid fan of open wheel racing), yeah, I watched quite a bit of Lib action on Sunday. The delegate roll call was informally amusing stuff where any mention of on-line gaming, legalization of marijuana, gun ownership and gay marriage brought many hoots and hollers from the rabble. The mood was decidedly anti-Iraq War as well. (Alaska: 'The state that welcomes global warming with open arms.' Vermont: 'Where the 2nd Amendment is your gun permit.' Kentucky: 'Home of bourbon, tobacco and another unmentionable cash crop.' New York: 'Home of Hillary Clinton…yeah, I'm sorry.')

There were some fireworks when Christine Smith, a candidate who failed to make it to the second ballot, angrily denounced Bob Barr as 'a Republican rubber-stamper' of the welfare and warfare society'. While she ostensibly welcomed newcomers to the party, she growled with deep suspicion of the man who went on to win the nomination.

The big party conventions lost their relevance decades ago and are now just hyped up springboards for the propaganda-fest that is a presidential election. But the third parties actually need conventions to cement their ideologies and to re-establish a network of support. It was like a civics lesson in what political conventions must have been like: grand standing, flesh pressing, drunken hooting and utterly dull bean counting. The collection of potential nominees made for a lively and informal discussion in their debate on Saturday night. I'm not sure I was enlightened as a citizen but I was amused here and there and by golly these fringe-y types speak with an authenticity and urgency that Dems and Reps can only summon up like thespians. (Though I must admit my first thought was 'Shouldn't these guys be wearing fezzes?')

I grew up in a Libertarian household and I've never had any allegiance to Republicans and the Democrats, so it was an all-good ceremony in my eyes, even if I wouldn't dream of voting for Barr, Ruwart, Paul or any of the other political interlopers from this crowd. That's less on ideological grounds and more on plain laziness and a deep disgust with anything political in America--especially voting. I don't vote because I don't particularly care for any of the candidates or their passions. They don't inspire me and the idea that it is my responsibility to vote is pure bullshit, a guilt trip that just doesn't work on me. As an economic determinist, coercing me to choose between competing producers of political rhetoric is akin to making me buy beer against my will or bicycle tires or knitting needles or any other product from multiple brands. Oh yes, political rhetoric is a product. You buy it, you support it with your dollars. It is a choice not a responsibility and when the choice is between insipid and dull, I choose to watch from a distance. Why would I bother to vote? I assert my American-ness every time I reach for my wallet, voice my opinion or venture out into the public space. America isn't the government, it's the people. The government doesn't control the culture or the economy--though politicians like to think otherwise--and I don't need to vote to be involved.

History lesson: Ever wonder where the Libertarian Party came from? The fact that this guy was the best thing the right had to offer after 1964 is pretty much your starting point.