Jim Bovard
Sunni: I agree, Jim; the conversations can be more fun than the blogging itself for me. Speaking of feedback ... I like the detail you go into in your books, and especially appreciate your excellent documentation. But I can see where some people might say that you engage in overkill in making your point. Do you see that criticism as mostly a symptom of our sound-bite society?
Jim: I am reminded of the joke that Woody Allen told at the start of Annie Hall
Boy, the food at this place is really terrible.
The other one says, Yeah, I know; and such small portions.
Some people react to my books by saying, This guy's conclusions are all full of crap. And besides, he has too much evidence.
If my books and articles pronounced the same conclusions as most writers, I would need little or no evidence to support them. But the further outside conventional wisdom or acceptable opinion the conclusions, the higher the standard of proof becomes. The greater the heresy, the more evidence required to buttress it. Vivid evidence is vital to persuading people on the danger of government power. If I sought only to preach to the choir, I would dispense with the evidence and go directly to passing judgment.
Sunni: And that would reduce you to being just another one of the libertarian mental wankers like me, instead of contributing the hard work that allows us to point and say, See? We're right!
Jim: Females can be wankers? Dang, another youthful illusion of mine bites the dust. You are out there slugging away—you have a broad following—and a lot of people come to your site for news and views. Don't underestimate how your efforts may be resonating in broader circles. You are keeping the fire burning hot.
Sunni: Now we're getting close to Bacchus' territory—which reminds me: he told me I could tell you that before he started down the path to becoming a king of smut, he was a lawyer, so there's hope for you to successfully transition, too, if you want. But, back on track here ... Rational ignorance, opportunity cost, apathy, and a number of other explanations have been offered to explain why USSA citizens don't pay a lot of attention to electoral politics. Especially when the outrages are flying thick and fast, as they have been with Bushnev for some time, it's hard to avoid becoming cynical or burned out. Why do you think people seem to tune out so much?
Jim: Various reasons. Some people tune out because they don't realize the danger of permitting other people to have arbitrary, coercive power over them. Some people don't give a damn about either freedom or controlling their own lives. Some people assume that it is hopeless to resist. And the more people who reach that conclusion, the easier it becomes for politicians to seize more power. There is nothing wrong with being cynical, as long as the cynicism does not make a person assume that everything is futile.
Sunni: Excellent point, Jim. It's never futile, as history shows ... But success isn't possible if one doesn't try.
Jim: And there is honor in fighting for one's rights and liberties, regardless of the outcome.
Sunni: Yes. As best I can recall, your overall tone throughout your books has been one of respect for what the Founding Fathers established with the Constitution. Is that accurate?
Jim: Absolutely. As the old saying goes, The Constitution isn't perfect, but it's better than what we have now.
Sunni: Do you think it's possible to get the federal government we're currently saddled with back within those constraints? Or is another revolution necessary for liberty to advance again?
Jim: At the least, Americans must revolutionize their thinking about politicians' prerogative to lie to them and trample their rights.
Sunni: And that isn't going to happen as long as most parents send their kids to the government youth indoctrination camps, as Vin Suprynowicz calls them. This is a question probably best pondered at leisure over a few cold ones, and I'd love to do that with you someday, but I'm still gonna ask it now: the mess we're currently in is a hugely tangled ball. How does one choose an optimum place to begin detangling?
Jim: I don't have a good answer for that. Different friends of freedom have different passions—and there is no universal best way to begin standing up for your rights and liberties. Some of the gun groups have done superb work, some of the property rights groups have succeeded brilliantly, the fully informed jury folks have won some big battles, and the home-schoolers are planting seeds for the future. I think it would help if libertarians did more solid reading. Some libertarians I have met seem to believe that knowing and repeating a few phrases is sufficient. This type of complacency makes it very difficult to help non-libertarians recognize and understand how government imperils their own lives. It is not enough to know that most politicians are liars and that most government interventions are scams. Libertarians have to go beyond talk-radio-level comprehension of the issues.
