John Stossel has authored an interesting piece about college students who were part of a Students for Liberty conference in Washington, D.C.
Even in an audience filled with libertarians, there were unsettled issues and divisive questions. Some students and speakers sounded a lot like the campus leftists who complain about “privilege.” Others sounded conservative and sought guidance from their religion.
I think this diversity is a good sign for the future of libertarian ideas. There are many ways for free people to live and to accomplish their goals — and as these students learned, the most important thing is not to assume that government has the answer to the questions.
Students for Liberty’s website says: ” … this is the most libertarian generation. The millennial generation is more social, organized and receptive to liberty, but also the most punished by the economic misconduct of older generations.”
Old politicians and old voters may never change their minds. But libertarianism grows fastest among the young, and so groups like Students for Liberty give me hope. Those young people sure know more about liberty that I did when I was their age.
I hope there are enough 20-somethings who understand that the astronomical growth in government power imposed over the past five or six years will have a direct, negative impact on their lives. It’s not that I wish them poor prospects. On the contrary, I feel sorry for them. I hope their understanding of what’s being taken from them will spur them to join the fight to right the ship.
