Dave Rubin (you should look him up) is a popular liberal you-tuber, pod-caster and media figure who has been syndicated by The New York Times, Time Magazine and Huffington Post.
In a video recently published by Dennis Prager’s PragerU, Rubin gave a helpful appeal to “progressives” to return to their classical liberal roots. I think that most of my left or progressive leaning friends would find this appeal difficult to accept. Difficult because, though they’ll find themselves wanting to agree with Rubin… too many caveats will prevent them from being able to. Rubin’s depiction of the “classic liberal” is far more closely aligned with libertarianism than anything resembling modern day progressivism. He, like many others who have become disenchanted with the progressive movement, came to realize that the ideology known as political liberalsim began as a philosophy that cherished freedom of thought and ideas, freedom of expression… freedom from a government that could force you to do or be what someone else wanted you to do or be. But Rubin found that somewhere down the line from this original ideology, something changed. And that something, became progressivism. And progressivism, among other things, was far less about the individual’s freedom and far more about identity politics… which I believe is nothing more than a fancy phrase for tribalism.
Broadly speaking, tribe mentality doesn’t work when it comes to government. It’s oppressive even when the ‘tribe’ your fighting for (by way of government intervention) is a minority. I’m a libertarian. And yes, I know that it’s easier to be a libertarian when the particular “tribe” that you belong to happens to be the tribe that is the majority. But I believe that attempts to (I’m being very specific here…) “level the playing field” by use of government such that no-one has any advantage over another is a commendable fallacy at best and a dangerous oppression at worst.
I’m a libertarian because I believe that the classical liberal defense of the the individual’s freedom is the right approach to government.