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17 April 2003: "Where you stand depends on where you sit"

A couple of people who have linked to me have reflected the rather unwieldy phrase I used in my "About" page to describe my political stance (I was thinking of changing it, but I suppose that'll have to wait). As an exercise in self-indulgency, I thought I might expound a little on what it all means.
(Feel free to skip this one if it sounds dull.)

When I say I am "left of centre," it boils down to that I am a social democrat in the continental European sense of the term. I'm in favour of a free-market economy, but I think a social security and medical "safety net" is a good thing. I believe trade unions, for all their faults, fulfil an essential function in a capitalist society. I believe there are a limited number of services (particularly ones requiring fixed infrastructure, such as utilities and railways) which are better operated by government than by private industry. I'm a capitalist with reservations.

The "quasi-libertarian" element is basically expressed in that I think the primary function of government is to protect the civil liberties of its citizens, be it from their fellow citizens, foreign powers, or indeed agents of the government itself. Unlike a "classic" libertarian, however, I don't necessarily think this should be the only function of government. I don't oppose private ownership of firearms, though I do favour regulation (such as requiring prospective owners to take, and pass, gun safety classes before allowing them to own firearms).

I put "pragmatist" at the end, because it covers all the aforegoing; I don't hold my beliefs out of ideology, but rather out of (enlightened, or so I'd like to think) self-interest. I'm pro-free market (and pro-globalisation) because I'm a self-centred consumerist (in the sense of "one who favours the promotion of the consumer's interests"); I don't see why I should shell out, say, €60 for a pair of trousers that cost the equivalent of €35 in the rest of the world, or €20 for a music CD which would still turn a profit if it were sold for less than half that. In this regard, I do believe government has a part to play in keeping free markets free by cracking down on cartels and the like. I'm in favour of government-run railway systems because of the complete shambles that the privatisation of British Rail turned into, and the way the Dutch Nederlandse Spoorwegen seem to heading downhill as well; that said, if someone were to demonstrate to me how a privatised rail service would do a better job, I might well alter my opinion.

I also believe that politics all too often involves choosing between less bad (though not good) and worse options, especially in international affairs. I have no patience for people who criticise the bad option, but feel no obligation to come up with a viable alternative; what I call the "Naomi Klein school of thought" (or lack thereof).

So there you have it, to some extent; clearly, I could never run for office, because I don't have anything that resembles a platform.

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A Fistful of Euros
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Crooked Timber
Gallowglass
Mr. McGillicuddy
eameljenet
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101-280
Colby Cosh
Peaktalk
Mick Hartley
Oliver Kamm

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