How Is It That Pillows Are Still Legal?

Last Saturday night (February 23, 2008), at the Libertarian Party of California's state convention, LP presidential candidate George Phillies hosted a hospitality suite for California delegates. Here he greeted and glad-handed them, offered wine and cheese, discussed his policy proposals, and answered questions.


Little did Phillies know that, in the very next room, a heated debate over an especially controversial by-laws provision had erupted into violence!


Before the eyes of terrified onlookers, Libertarian Party national Vice Chair Chuck Moulton and LNC At-Large Representative Angela Keaton became engaged in a savage pillow fight!


The two combatants lashed out with their death pillows, while shrieking competing interpretations of Roberts Rules of Order.


Fearing that hostilities may escalate into soft cushions and comfy chairs, libertarian onlookers began debating (1) whether the use of pillows violated the non-aggression principle, and (2) whether stopping the fight would violate the non-intervention principle.


One Objectivist insisted that dropping a nuclear bomb on the combatants in order to prevent the proliferation of pillows in the hands of anarcho-fascists would be moral -- unless it were done for altruistic reasons.

Wayne Allyn Root's Bogus Image Change

The pro-war Root is trying to recast his image, and (like the empty skirt, Christine Smith) ride Paul’s coattails to the LP nomination.

“Hey, I’m not Paul, but I’m just as good. Really, honest Injun, I’m just like him. Pay no attention to my past, pro-war pronouncements.”

Yet even now, Root says that the Iraq War was "a mistake," rather than that it was morally wrong. Nor has he pulled back his past pronouncements calling for war on Iran.

Now that Paul is out, I’m still hoping that Karen Kwiatkowski will jump in. (Pretty slim chance, at this late point, but I can hope…)

If not Kwiatkowski, then I guess I’ll support Kubby or Phillies, most likely in that order. Either is okay with me.

Wayne Allyn Root Trounced in Otherwise Meaningless Primary

Here are the mostly irrelevant results for Super Tuesday's Libertarian Party presidential "primary election" in California. They indicate little, apart from Root's lack of appeal.

(Below the results, I explain why they indicate nothing, apart from Root's failure as a candidate.)

Christine Smith (Lib) 3,490 25.1 %
Steve Kubby (Lib) 2,362 17.0 %
Wayne A. Root (Lib) 1,918 13.8 %
Bob Jackson (Lib) 1,230 8.9 %
Barry Hess (Lib) 749 5.4 %
George Phillies (Lib) 698 5.1 %
Michael P. Jingozian 655 4.7 %
Daniel Imperato (Lib) 599 4.3 %
Robert Milnes (Lib) 605 4.3 %
John Finan (Lib) 588 4.2 %
Dave Hollist (Lib) 565 4.0 %
Alden Link (Lib) 447 3.2 %

Now, here's why Christine Smith's "victory" is really not a victory at all...

The "primary voters" for this election came from the 83-86,000 (last I heard) registered Libertarians in California. Unlike the 1,200+ dues-paying CLP members (from which the likely 50 or so CLP delegates to the LP national convention will be chosen), primary voters don't follow internal LP politics, so they're unfamiliar with the candidates.

It's thus not surprising that the only female name, Christine Smith, won. Sorry, but Smith won due to voter ignorance, and because of her sex. (And before you call me a "sexist," remember, I'm the one who's been promoting Karen Kwiatkowski for president these last several years.)

Smith's victory does not reflect her actual support among the eventual California delegation. It doesn't even reflect her support among primary voters, since they voted for her out of ignorance.

However, the real loser was Wayne Allyn Root. Root is the only LP candidate who is known to primary voters. Root's the only one who's appeared on Major Media for months now, doing talk radio and cable TV shows throughout Southern California.

And still, with all that Major Media attention, Root came in third.

Smith won due to voter ignorance. Root lost due to voter awareness.

I predict that neither candidate will be the favorite of the CLP (or national) delegation at the national convention.