An Open Letter to BJ Lawson

I've heard a lot of politicians invoke the label of "socialist" lately, applying it to anyone and everyone in the Democratic party but especially Obama. I wonder what they mean. Where did it come from.....the General Motors takeover, health care reform, or is it just a political ploy? One accepted definition of socialism is state ownership of the means of production. I guess the General Motors, big banks, etc takeover could be seen as a socialist act. But as I understand it, most of those loans have been paid back early, so the "state ownership" was relatively brief and led to functioning businesses rather than bankruptcy. That whole philosophy seemed very pro big business to me and not really aligned with true socialism. Another accepted definition of socialism is worker-owned means of production. Given the pitiful state of labor these days, I can't see any industry where that could be the case. Of course, health care reform does guarantee some minimal level of coverage for workers. Could anyone really believe that is socialistic? That leaves me to believe that our educational system has failed again. A large segment of the US population has latched onto the "socialist" label without even understanding what it means. But they know they are afraid of it, and there are a lot of politicians using that fear. As a political ploy, I find it despicable. If you're a politician who is using this tactic, or any other that generates fear, I implore you to rethink your approach. Give voters a positive reason to vote FOR you; reject tactics and language that generate fear.Hope I haven't co-opted your post George. 

I remember back around last August when Lawson said he wouldn't run and wouldn't endorse the
GOP who was campaigning for the 2010 election at the time, he said on his website "we fundamentally disagree on the value of the Federal Reserve and its
communist..."  It seems as though anyone challenging Lawson, in the GOP primary or the general election, is at risk of being labeled pro-communist ideas or socialist.  Which I imagine if everyone can start to look that way if you take libertarianism too far.  But if you take it too far you lose the ability for our nation to tackle big problems.I don't know if that image (hopefully pictured above) will show.  It seems that I can't get any pictures to load on OP any more.  But it pictures Lawson& reads "say no to amnesty"  I watched the accompanying video where he denounces "comprehensive immigration reform" as just other words for "amnesty"I can't imagine someone who is anti-gay marriage, will make getting rid of a bad law like DOMA a priority.What about things like the EPA or CDC? The environment isn't limited to one state, its interconnected, the spread of disease isn't either, and neither are oil spills. These are just a few areas where taking libertarianism too far defeats our country's ability to tackle big problems... like comprehensive immigration reform.

Fellow civil libertarian here, but I'm not exactly clear on where some of this stuff is coming from."our country would be far better off with the the party of Eisenhower than with the party of Rupert Murdock"Rupert Murdock is not a politician, has no official capacity with the Republican party, and is under no obligation to do anything other than what he wants to do as a private businessman.  I don't like News Corp anymore than I imagine you do, but the answer to that is easy: don't patronize them.  Rupert Murdoch has almost nothing to do with the sad state of the political Republican party."Your belief in the Bill of Rights seemed genuine and principled.  And then you finally admitted to me that you'd use the power of government to stop a woman from having an abortion."I'm pro-choice as well, but I'm not clear on what the Bill of Rights has to do with it.  Which of the first 10 amendments do you see as protective of the right to have an abortion?  I've never though libertarian thought was particularly instructive here -- if you honestly believe that a fetus is a human life, there is no libertarian principle that insists abortion must nevertheless remain legal. "When we talked, you seemed to understand that our true problem is not big government but government owned by corporations"The problem is not that corporations "own" government; the problem is that government panders to entrenched interests.  The health care act, which was cleared by insurance companies (who make out great due to the fact that the entire country is forced to become a customer of theirs) before it was voted upon, is one example.  The recent FDA takeover of tobacco regulation is another; tobacco companies gained exemptions for things like menthol, which would otherwise have been banned.  Corporations will naturally seek out profitable situations, which is none of our business.  It is the responsibility of elected officials, not of private businessmen, to prevent corruption and improper influence here.  Too much corporate influence is a governmental failure, not a corporate one."You call David Price, elected to Congress in 1987, a "career politician" and then fawn at the feet of Ron Paul, elected in 1976."Ron Paul has been a stronger advocate for constitutional civil freedoms than any other politician I can think of, on either side of the aisle.  Why someone supposedly concerned with protecting civil liberty would decry the presence of an ally like that is beyond me.  He may not be perfect, but he's better than all the rest of them. I don't know much about either Price or Lawson, but this piece says little about where either of them actually stand on civil liberties; perhaps because the author seems confused on the issue in the first place.

I heard an interview with him a couple of years ago and he totally understands the corporate control of society. Anyone hearing this interview would have thought he was neither Republican or Democrat - certainly not Republican. Looks like ambition is causing his principles to atrophy.

Can you really not see why BJ Lawson has changed his tune?  It's because he thinks he has a snowball's chance this year.  I don't believe he will win, but the comparison between 2010 and 1994 is not lost on Lawson.

After earlier attempts, announced here on OP, that fell through for one reason or another, we have finally been able to schedule B. J. Lawson, the Republican challenger to David Price, on my radio program. We also wanted to schedule David and, as it turns out, they were only able to do it on the same day. To my disappointment (though not in the least, Ruby, my surprise), David’s people were not keen to have the three of us on the air at the same time, although Lawson was. So I am pleased to announce a special two-hour broadcast of Ethics Matters, hosted by James Coley, on WCOM-LP (103.5 FM) on Saturday morning, the 23rd of October. In the eight o’clock hour, my guest will be B. J. Lawson, the Republican challenger to David Price, our representative in Congress. For the nine o’clock segment, my guest will be David Price. The program is associated with the Ethical Humanist Society of the Triangle (EHST).Many people find that the best way to listen to WCOM is online. Go to the following link and, at the home page, click the box at the right that reads "Listen Online. Click here for Streaming Webcast."          http://wcomfm.org This will not be a debate, but rather two back-to-back candidate conversations with a talk show host who does not hide his views any more than, say, Rachel Maddow does. I will not be an impartial debate emcee, but instead a fair interviewer in open discussions. The views expressed will be my own, and those of the candidates, not the EHST or WCOM. I intend to open up the phone lines during both hours so that you can take part in the conversations. Call 919-929-9601 and stay on the line until I can get to you and put you directly on the air.My thanks got to Frank Keary of the EHST for helping to make these arrangements, and to the Price and Lawson campaigns. I am looking forward to the discussions, and I hope you will be listening.James Coley

how he squares his oppostion to gay rights with his professed libertarian philosophy.

I've made a crude Web page with a link to download the mp3 of the WCOM broadcast this past Saturday morning, including the Ethics Matters interviews with B. J. Lawson and David Price. (The recording was started some minutes before Ethics Matters, during the program hosted by Tobin Logan.) Here is the link to the Web page.          http://www.unc.edu/~jpcoley/EthicsMatters.htmJames Coley