SOPA Opponents, Ron Paul Are Unlikely Allies

• it's amazing how many people misunderstand libertarianism. libertarianism has nothing to do with the crony-capitalism that the republicans promote. corporate protectionism is more inline with collectivism and anti-free market philosophy (i.e., socialism, facism and the current gop establishment). also, i don't believe paul subscribes to ayn rand objectivism.

• "Thing is, the measures have been championed by big business interests (namely, the entertainment industry) -- which would lead you to believe that they'd get a lot of support from the uber-capitalist/pro-property rights/libertarian/Ayn Rand camp." A basic, politically illiterate reading of the political divide in this country would lead you to assume that businesses (and the Republican party by extension) are insistent upon small government, but this has never really been the case. Business LOVES big government, it always has, it just likes a certain type of it, namely the type that dishes astronomical amounts of cash their way but doesn't set any discernible or binding expectations on how its spent, the way a real investor would. Bonus points if you can stack the deck and fill regulatory agencies with sympathetic people (preferably former employees) who are going to use their power to entrench your position in the market as much as possible (oh hey what's up Bush Administration) In this sense the business community and libertarians have always been at odds, the cynically pragmatic versus the rigidly dogmatic, and the latter have tended to be the hapless stooges of the former, coming out in force to aid paleoconservatives in against encroaching regulation (that undercuts corporate profits), and ineffectually protesting when those same paleoconservatives line up behind other encroaching regulation (that calcifies market hegemony) and bundle up billions in subsidies under the thinnest of pretenses. It's made all the more pathetic by the right-wing pundit class's (Glenn Beck, et al) co-option of the term "conservative libertarian" (which must be something like an ATM machine, or PIN number) to describe people who are just solidly anti-regulation. So when it seems odd that corporate business interests haven't lined up behind Ron "Hate Whitey Day" Paul, you have to remember that to them he's all book-learning.

• You mean you'd like them to share links documenting his "support" of the bills?

• Libertarians are pretty anarchistic in many respects, as is Ron Paul.  The desire for small, limited government doesn't really mesh well with the concept of government censoring the internet.  I'm not sure the author has a clue. I'm glad she gets his stance now though. Too bad Village Voice readers probably aren't voting in any Republican primaries anyway. But more importantly: Zombie Prom at the Bell House. WTF! :-P

• Concise & precise. And here I was writing a thousand words. Thank you, Gerald, you made my day.

• " Thing is, the measures have been championed by big business interests (namely, the entertainment industry) -- which would lead you to believe that they'd get a lot of support from the uber-capitalist/pro-property rights/libertarian/Ayn Rand camp. ". Really - did you even "GOOGLE" for Ayn Rand - or even read Cliffs-notes on either Fountainhead or Atlas Shrugged? Wow, for someone writing on a website, you sure seem to be far out from the reality. . Honest, hard-working individuals should be granted the right to the fruits of their labor - that's all there is to it. Communists want to prevent this - so that they can redistribute wealth from the haves to the have-nots. National-Socialists are now doing the same in the USA - tax one group in the false pretext of helping another; the only group that's eventually helped are the ones that line their pockets - and that, my friend, is not the 99% crowd. . If you could, for a minute, think objectively, you'll see that neither Ayn Rand, nor Ron Paul supports a particular group - they don't support ANY  GROUP. The entire concept of "grouping" or classifying people into categories - it's just so disgusting. Individualism is the opposite to such collectivisim. And that's the bottom-line. Collectively, each person will want another to do a job that they themselves don't like to. Individuals, on the other hand, take up a job they like & do it to the best of their heart & souls (not just ability). . Trying to impose a collectivist "group"s [these groups may be Monsanto-Soy-Bean-monopolists or Military-Industrial-giants or Entertainment-giants] rule on the general population via SOPA PIPA or Partiot Act or NDAA is grossly against the basic tenets of Individual Liberty & Personal Freedom. . MN

• Ron Paul and anti-SOPA are extremely likely allies. The internet is basically the worlds last free market.

• I would ask the author of this article to post a link to whichever full-length lecture they watched Dr. Paul give where they were informed that Paul would be against these bills. As a libertarian, Paul extols the free market and competition, and is EXPLICITLY against any regulation that would benefit one particular group at the expense of another. However, if I'd only ever read your article, I'd imagine that Paul might support ANY bill that was specifically good for big business. He is for business, but he just doesn't think the freedom of online speech should be federally hindered to protect special interests. Remember: the establishment = protectionism, Paul = equality. But my question to the author stands, from what sources did you form your opinions of Paul?

• Libertarians, like Ron Paul, believe in both civil and economic liberties. It stems from good parenting that raises children to be independent, critical thinking individuals rather than collective, teacher-led worker bees. 

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