If Housepets were Libertarians

So.... instead of arguing about goldfish, does anyone care to explain how libertarian philosophies aren't anything at all like the caricatures depicted in the cartoons?


Cuz I've already said a couple of them seemed pretty dead-on to me, and I'd be more than willing to listen to anyone who wanted to explain why that wasn't really the case.

I've personally known stock tank goldfish that have survived for decades.

They get big too.

Cats are libertarians? Really? Mine always seemed to more like little despots.

It's much more fun to ignore the analogy and keep repeating "That means you think government is god! That means you think government is god!"

I see where you're coming from here, and you make a good point.

However, I don't read those strips like that. What I see is the author removing the libertarains' arguments from a context where the merits of infrastructure are debatable, to a context where they are obvious, and showcasing that the arguments work just as well or badly -- indicating that those arguments lack connection to their real context, and fail to suggest specific harm done or specific alternatives to government structures.

Others are more than welcome to create their own libertarian caricatures.

The funny thing is that all the animals in the first cartoon are caricatures of nanny-state liberals rather than libertarians- completely dependent on others for their survival and well being. Of course, the author completely misses that in his attempt to slam libertarian ideals.

I don't find the comics particularly effective in making their points, but it's equally weak to take from them, "Look, critics of libertarians equate government with God!"

When you start out with some seriously unfunny cartoon straw men, you can't really expect anyone to dignify it by taking the high road.

Because it's not as if humor is subjective...

Anyway, it's obvious those animals aren't libertarians. They don't have guns.

No, that is actually the main point of the strips. That point being, If you're a libertarian, live in the US, and claim that the US government infringes your liberties, why are you still there?

Because cutting and running (or the threat thereof) is a liberal tactic for changing something you don't like.

Ergo, the strip is a big pile of

I would accuse anyone who actually saw humor or wit in those strips of being the kind of shrill partisan douche gargler who can't rebut an opposing argument without reducing the other person to a ridiculously exaggerated and distorted caricature.

Indeed. The absurdity only holds if the liberal cartoonist gets to frame things with [libertarians] as tame lapdogs:

Then again, sometimes no reduction is necessary...

I have no trouble at all believing that you think this is very often true.

Because they've assigned themselves the impossible goal of pushing everybody else out. And their frustration when the rest of us won't either convert or GO AWAY makes them very, very ANGRY!!!!!

I like this game.

^Laborious attempt at humor *and* copyright violation. You've got the makings of a true Propertopian!

Not just goldfish either.

Our ranch has fish in literally every dugout, pond, lake, or watering hole.

It helps keep the water clean and fresh.

So not only have you guys found a new mascot for your movement, but you've substantiated what the fish is saying in the original cartoon.

Fact: You don't need a fucking filter to keep water clean for gold fish, or any other kind of fish either. Flow has mentioned that he has kept goldfish in ponds for years, and my family has been doing it for decades as well.

Therefore, the whole 'filter' thing is a bunch of shit. Fish thrive in algae infested water. In fact, I've also seen goldfish, pike, trout, catfish, bass and numerous other kinds of fish get quite big when they're in 'dirty' water for any period of time.

That is exactly why the comic strip is a load of shit. The fish don't need a 'filter'....and a lot of fish that are put into a tank where the 'government' controls their feeding habits, and the filtering system....die. Yet, the ponds on my families land are thriving with fish. Without any 'government' tank, and without any 'government' filter.

Nature was designed to function without human interference. Isn't this what Global Warming is all about? Human interference fucking up the planet? Yet, look how quickly the proponents to global warming are quick to jump over to the other side and claim that human intervention is a GOOD thing. That fish in a tank NEED a filter, and that having someone control what they eat, how much oxygen is in the water, how clean the water is, how often the filter gets changed....is a GOOD thing.

Okay, wonderful. So goldfish really *are* libertarians, imprisoned in a nanny state. Got it.

And, to be fair:

Not really, no. The primary problem with the "comic" strip is that is addresses a caricature of libertarianism that has little to do with reality. It is thus, like just about all the other arguments of the anti-libertarians, a straw-man argument.

I have never figured out why those who are opposed to libertarianism can't actually address libertarianism. Why all the ad hominem fallacies, the straw-men, the caricatures? Why not simply describe in detail why government coordination of most areas of life is better than letting people do what they want as long as it doesn't hurt others, and then take responsibility for their own actions? That would address the real issue, because that is what libertarianism is about.

Even as a limited libertarian, I could do it myself, in clear and specific terms, without having to use all these childish attempts to avoid the real issue.

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Touche!

libertarians have a skewed sense of humor, but nice taste in shoes.

So what are you waiting for?

And just think, back in the day it used to mean you were for quaint things like self-determination, and basically everything else modern libertarians are supposed to be for.

like good looking shoes, amirite?