Libertarian Party Factionalism
I had two conversations yesterday about how we deal with internal Party criticisms that were vastly different.
We need to get this straight: it sometimes doesn’t matter what we intended in what we say - it matters how others heard it.
When told that something one said went unintentionally awry the thing to do is not double down and defend it at all costs. Not if you care about relationships. The thing to do is to hear what the other person is saying, and even if they are attacking you, and learn from it.
In one instance yesterday the right thing happened.
In another the exact opposite.
Which is more likely to build relationships?
And in the course of those discussions some criticisms were aimed at me. The right thing to do now is to consider if they had merit and learn and adjust.
If you or me ever think we are just absolutely right in every interpersonal exchange and walk away feeling completely not convicted about something we could improve, then we are foolishly wrong.
This is most difficult to do when the critic is indeed wrong on many things and their method is atrocious. That’s not an excuse for us to ignore the bits of truth for improvement. That critic may never change. But we can.
We don’t apply this in this Party nearly enough. Some (not me) are fantastic at it.
That is the heart of destructive factionalism.
A good measure is this - though there are others. Have you ever stepped back - and even though you know your intentions were good and you still think that your words/actions are justifiable - and just said to another, even (or particularly) someone you don’t like, and said- you’ve got a point. Okay I see such and such - and even better if you can sincerely apologize after seeing the validity of their point.
People get mad at articles like this and go BUT WHO ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?
And thus miss my point. I’m talking about no one and everyone and myself and you.
Thank you! You are right. If we really are not about force than it seems that by definition we cannot force our opinions on others. I certainly stand up for my principles but that does not imply that everyone must accept them as law. Kind of what it means to be against aggression or force. Good post.
Thank you so much, it is a hard lesson to learn.
It seems a difficult exercise for most to look at a situation from a perspective other than their own. If only we all could take pause in our own ego long enough to weigh options for the most positive, lasting outcome. A differing opinion isn't necessarily wrong. It may be perfectly correct, due to the experiences they've had leading up to the formation of that opinion. It's only when we take the time to share the experiences behind that opinion that we might come to an understanding and possibly compromise. Our world has taught us to expedite things, but we must fight that conditioning in order to better our relationships. You can only facilitate change by opening up and taking the time to make those connections.
It is particularly hard when the critic is being a real jerk, but even those people we find difficult to get along with usually have a point to digest out of it all.
Sometimes they prove the purity of their message by not caring at all how you "feel" about the brutal truth they are allowing to splash wherever it pleases...even on you.
Some of my best teachers were the harshest...human and metaphorical.
Well said, it's good to adjust and take correction everytime we made a mistake, though in most cases, what do happen that makes it difficult is the way people correcting us (I can called that criticism).
Not everyone likes to be criticized ,in fact most people don't. But nevertheless ,we have to be relax and take some important point in their criticism ,after all, nobody knows it all.
Exactly!
The Party is a joke, and that's why I left it in 2005. They are nothing more than a social club of do-nothings and those who meant well but will soon burn out and continue on a different path because the Libertarian Party doesn't care about winning elections. Michael Badnarik was the last decent candidate the Party had. After that, it's been a procession of frauds and the clueless gallery of naive newbies who nominated them somehow.
The libertarian philosophy endures and thrives DESPITE the Libertarian Party, not BECAUSE of it. As long as idiots continue denying that Ron Paul as a Republican was more libertarian than "Libertarian" Gary Johnson and his fraud sidekick, the LP will continue to underperform into pariah insignificance.
So, what about you--have YOU put YOUR name on a ballot and actually walked the talk, or do you seriously think that only having some silly Party "title" is all you need to make yourself feel like you're doing something productive for liberty?
Everyone I work with cares about the twin pillars of making new Libertarians and winning elections. I have not yet run for public office but my husband is on the ballot this year. One of us at a time is about all we can handle, and I am heading up a massive historical preservation project of Libertarian Party materials. I'm looking maybe at 2020 but definitely not until after I am no longer on the Libertarian National Committee.
You might find new ones, but they'll soon grow tired of the lack of results and leave too...and I'm referring to the good ones...the rest are, as we've seen repeatedly, just big talkers. When I ran as a Libertarian 2 of my 3 races, it's embarrassing how few Libertarians stepped up, relative to how many pay lip service to liberty.
And "making new Libertarians", if you're serious about winning for liberty, should NOT be a concern, by the way. If you're serious, you'll just do what YOU need to do and, through your actions, will attract supporters who are serious about DOING something too...not just cheap-talking it. Using the excuse that liberty isn't winning because there aren't enough "Libertarians" is profoundly flawed and naive. I'm telling you. Take it from someone WITH experience AND who nearly won MY 3rd of 3 US House races. I DO know what I'm talking about...because I DID it!
Actually I don't think it particularly productive to tell others how to Liberty. You do you boo.
But then again, since you have ZERO experience actually DOING something, with YOUR name on the line, you don't know what you're saying. Just because you're surrounded by lip service doesn't mean you know anything about ideology in action.
You can think what you do is brilliant...like an artist might. But, like the art critic, watching someone like you spinning your wheels, from my EXTENSIVE experience, is my freedom too.
You are very humble too.
Actually I won a lawsuit against the state of Colorado for violating freedom of political speech. You don't know me.
You're a Party aparatchik. It tells me plenty. Not a SINGLE victory in 47 years of existence but, because of you on the scene now, it's "different" this time...right?
Or am I right that you're just there to be a small fish in a micro-pond? If I'm wrong, I'm giving you the pleasure of proving me so. If I'm right, what have I lost in assessing you EXACTLY as you are?
And I'm sorry you confuse experience that justifies speaking confidently with a lack of humility. Do you make it a habit of focusing more on the delivery than the substance of the message, while we're on it?
Are you there to virtue-signal to other "Libertarians" how "important" your title is, or are you there to WIN ELECTIONS? It's a simple question. Since you're talking about your love of the Party, my philosophical challenge has merit.
Oh...and the founders didn't want Parties either...are you wiser today than they were back then? A simple yes or no will suffice. After everything I've witnessed from the Libertarian Party after 2004, it's no wonder they were correct even on that point.
But you go 'head and prove us all wrong...with such "libertarian" luminaries as Bob Barr, Bill Weld and Gary Johnson to your Party's credit...I must be "crazy" to criticize. I'm a "hater", right?
Boorish because I'm addressing you as part of the LP? Oh well. Don't be a part of the LP and you won't suffer the deserved condemnation, especially considering the last 13 laughable years. I don't need to know you personally if you're in a LP capacity. That's been my point all along, and precisely why I'm addressing you in your role as a LP apparatchik.
No you are just an unpleasant boorish person to someone you don't even know.
Your Party is a failure. If that's the association you wish to convey, then you're a fair target of my condemnation. The LP is a social club of losers and well-intentioned but naive newbies.
Show me on the doll where the LP touched you.
We touch with our fingers, primarily. Speaking of those, I have more libertarian integrity in my pinky finger than most of the leadership in the LP.
Your turn.
Is it true that the LP turned away Ron Paul as a guest speaker for the next convention?
No it's not.
So this isn't true?
http://libertyhangout.org/2018/02/libertarian-party-wont-let-ron-paul-speak-national-convention/
It isn't.
https://ouramericapac.com/thejacknews.com/politics/fact-check-did-the-libertarian-party-ban-ron-paul-from-speaking/
You must not have read the details about what your people at the LP said about Ron Paul. Did you not even look at the link I provided? I looked at yours...and it wasn't refuting it all, the way I'm thinking you hope it would.
How was this LP embarrassment resolved, since you say it's not true?
https://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/politics/item/28209-has-the-libertarian-party-rejected-ron-paul-and-judge-napolitano