Arguments Through the Ages: Barry Goldwater

Star Tribune ^ | November 17, 2002 | Barry Goldwater

[Cacique]

A little bit of history. I was 12 years old and 2 years in this country at the time.

[FreeLibertarian]

Goldwater at the end of his life, became, essentially, a libertarian. He had a lot of gripes with the socially conservative part of the GOP. He felt that the GOP was moving way to far in getting into a social agenda and away from the fiscal side.

He was right!

[Sonny M]

I'm not saying right or wrong. Its the reason though many people think he took a left turn later on in life.

[jla]

You're remarks in Post #11 may possibly be the most senseless I've ever read here.

[pariah]

Stunningly prophetic words, as relates to today's WoD, pc sanctions of every kind, and permissiveness in the name of compassion:

...balanced so that liberty lacking order will not become the slavery of the prison cell; balanced so that liberty lacking order will not become the license of the mob and of the jungle.

And CommonTator, what's this rant about Goldwater's 'pathetic' campaign? He ran a noble, courageous and honest campaign, not some Madison Avenue jive catering to the fears and foibles of the satiated, short-sighted masses. Goldwater was done in by the sheep-bleat hysteria generated by the liberal party and their media allies.

Btw, this speech was written, not by Barry himself, but by his speechwriter (I forget his name), a guy who a few years later became a radical Libertarian. Goldwater had to step right over him one time during a tax protest on the steps of Congress. The brief exchange between them was reminiscent of what transpired when Emerson visited Thoreau in prison. "Henry, why are you here?" "Ralph, why are you not here?" (Thoreau was in prison for refusing to pay his taxes.)

[pariah]

The writer's name is Karl Hess. Here's a short article from Reason Magazine:

In Memoriam: Karl Hess

Karl Hess, dubbed an "unconventional intellectual" by The Washington Post, died on April 22 at age 70, two years after receiving a heart transplant.

Unconventional Hess was, but never inconsistent. Over the more than 30 years of his quasi-public life as a writer and political activist, a single theme--pursuit of liberty-- dominated both his writings and his deeds.

"Everyone who speaks well of liberty and, more importantly, acts to enjoy it or extend it," Hess wrote as the editor of the Libertarian Party newsletter, "is welcome in my view ... My community is the community of all who love liberty."

Hess' s pursuit of liberty as he understood it sometimes made for strange bedfellows. At one time, he served as 1964 Republican presidential candidate Barry Goldwater's speechwriter. Later, he plunged into grass-roots community organizing, interacting with such groups as the Black Panther Party.

For Hess, liberty was a lifestyle, not simply a philosophical concept. In the 1970s, he strived to build an economically independent community. He brought to that effort ideas reminiscent of British writer E. F. Schumacher's "small is beautiful," experimenting with small-scale, "backyard" technologies, including solar ovens and windmills.

In many ways, this experiment embodied Hess's concept of liberty. Like other libertarian philosophers, he championed individualism. But Hess saw decentralized institutions as pivotal to nurturing freedom. And he seemed especially drawn to struggles for justice by "the little guy."

Though he wrote for numerous publications, including REASON, Hess penned his most famous lines as Goldwater's speechwriter. At the 1964 Republican convention, Goldwater proclaimed, "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice; moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue." Written 30 years ago, these words offer a concise summation of Hess's lifelong fervor for liberty.

--Lynn Scarlett, July 1994

[Publius]

The Man Behind the Movement: Goldwater's Ultimate Victory

[joebuck]

This exerpt leave out one of the best passages from Barry's speech, which is also included in the introduction to Mr. Goldwater's "Conscience of a Conservative" as goes as follows:

I have little interest in streamlining government or in making it more efficient, for I mean to reduce its size. I do not undertake to promote welfare, for I propose to extend freedom. My aim is not to pass laws, but to repeal them. It is not to inaugurate new programs, but to cancel old ones that do violence to the Constitution, or that have failed in their purpose, or that impose on the people an unwarranted financial burden. I will not attempt to discover whether legislation is "needed" before I have first determined whether it is constitutionally permissible. And if I should later be attacked for neglecting my constituents' "interests," I shall reply that I was informed their main interest is liberty and that in that cause I am doing the very best I can.

Barry Goldwater