But What The Hell Do I Know...

WHO THE HELL AM I?

I'm a father and husband above all things. I believe in God and a unique human soul which underpins our rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I am striving to be a pure vegetarian on health, environmental and animal rights grounds, though I do still eat meat on rare occasions (my dad's spare ribs are just too damn good!) I do yoga, though not nearly enough. I love art, science and technology, especially Apple technology. Back to the Future and Ghostbusters are my favorite movies. I try to be open and am not afraid to admit when I'm wrong. I love to debate. I can be way too verbose. I think cheerleading party politics is for the lazy and tend to think macro-economics is mostly storytelling if not outright sophistry. I am skeptical in general, though not as much as my mom.

In the end justice, respect for all life and a desire for universal freedom from aggression are the core principles by which I live and judge all things... and I love dummy humor (as in The Three Stooges).

My Upbringing

I'm 100% Italian-American and Catholic. I was born and raised in Pennsylvania (Philly area), but spent every summer since birth at the south Jersey shore. I have two loving, compassionate parents who are both generally libertarian-style conservatives, skeptical of big government and big corporate power. Like every kid that looked up to his parents, I followed their lead with "my" opinions on politics through my adolescence. I've always cared deeply about our world and about understanding what was moral and just.

My Work

I'm a director and executive producer at Spike TV. I've previously worked at MTV and Nickelodeon. In short, I'm a filmmaker and entertainment marketing exec. There are many exceptional, well-intentioned, creative people in the TV business and I love them dearly. There are even some excellent, thoughtful libertarians, though we are certainly the minority. Working in a business that's generally on the ideological "left", and pro-government intervention (and sometimes outright socialism), I've learned how vital it is to separate my ideas and ideological beliefs from judgements of people's personal motivation and character with whom I disagree. I consider this a crucial virtue. Preaching to the choir won't advance the cause of real liberty and freedom from aggression, so understanding other points of view is essential. There's always common ground to be had.

I will say that as I've gotten more vocal in my beliefs, I've been pleasantly surprised by how broadly they connect with people. I truly believe that real liberty and classical liberalism is the "third way" many people have been waiting for and hope I can help as many as possible find it.

You can see my latest work at johnpapola.com

Discovering Liberty

Probably my first move from being a less engaged, more gut-instinct oriented "conservative" to understanding and embracing a truly libertarian worldview was my recognition of the abject failure of the "war on drugs" in the real world. I've enjoyed a relatively sheltered life when it comes to drugs. My dad is a doctor (and a mentor) who always stressed the dangers of drug use and I've never been a particularly experimental or rebellious son. In other words, I'm very, VERY lucky.

Becoming an "adult" and joining the workforce in New York City exposed me to the diverse experiences of a broader range of people. I discovered that drug use was pervasive despite it's illegal status. Worse, it became clear that the most underprivileged areas and people suffered the greatest harm due to the violence of the black market for drugs and use-related imprisonment, while the rich suburban kids received slaps on the wrist for identical offenses and lived free from the gangs and criminals fueled by the drug trade. Again, I grew up sheltered from this stuff. Seeing the destruction this "conservative" policy was having in reality caused me to re-examine my core assumptions.

My exploration expanded greatly after reading "Give Me a Break" by John Stossel. That book resonated very deeply and opened my eyes for the first time to "libertarian" ideals. Indeed, "Give Me a Break" was my "Atlas Shrugged", a book I still have yet to read, though it's on the shortlist.

Enter Dr. Ron Paul

But the true catalyst for my current passion and deep desire to explore and espouse the ideals of classical liberalism and Austrian economics was my exposure to Ron Paul. I have an exceptionally brilliant young cousin, with whom I'd often debate, who directed me to the campaign. Dr. Paul's courage and resolve in the face of ridicule by the GOP establishment as well as the arrogant dismissal of his campaign by the shockingly collusive mainstream news media was impressive.

Coming from a family of physicians, I was naturally biased towards the good doctor. But his ideas and the integrity with which he professed (and acted upon) them is what really got me excited. His revelations on the role of the Federal Reserve and monetary policy were totally new to me (and, again, totally ignored by the media). Late in the campaign, just prior to the GOP primary in February of 2008, I signed up as a precinct captain for the Ron Paul campaign. I spent the weekend leading up to Feb 4th making calls on Dr. Paul's behalf.

But that was just the beginning, in a sense.

Revolutionary Evolution

My libertarian leaning was at that point still largely one of utility. "Free Markets work" was the thinking that animated me. I judged the failures of our foreign policy through a pragmatic lens as well. "Interventionism doesn't appear to make us safer", I believed. But things became much deeper and more fundamental after exploring the work of libertarian thinkers and scholars via places like Mises.org, Econtalk with Russ Roberts and Reason.com. I went on to read Dr. Paul’s "The Revolution: a Manifesto", Nassim Nicholas Taleb's "The Black Swan", Murray Rothbard's "For a New Liberty" and, on the economics front, Henry Hazlett's "Economic in One Lesson". All of these books should be mandatory reading for every public servant.

Econtalk and The Black Swan have been particularly influential in that they both provide a tremendous example of principled thought that's rooted in skepticism and humility, two qualities I strive for personally and professionally.

It was at this point, quite recently, that I'd begun to appreciate the moral basis of liberty. I realized that all libertarian ideas are rooted in our individual, natural right to freedom from aggression and coercion. This also made clear that government's acts are broadly illegitimate because they are derived from the monopoly of the use of force, whose threat underpins its ability to tax, print and borrow endlessly (all of which is theft).

All that said, I'm not a proponent of anarchy. Our social institutions, including government, have gone through an evolutionary process and have survived for a reason that makes them worthy of my thoughtful consideration. People seem to need the predictability of law and order so that they can plan their lives in peace.

The US Constitution lays out a solid role for government and I believe that our country's founding proves that we the people must always fight for the freedom we deserve. There appears to be a very pragmatic role for government in the protection of basic liberties, especially for those in the minority. Democracy, after all, is basically just mob rule on it's own. Sadly, I think it's become clear that the Constitution has failed in its primary task of limiting government power. So while I would love a return to the rule of law that is our Constitution, there's nothing especially sacrosanct about the document for me.

In my ideal world, there would be no coercive enterprises whatsoever. No monopolies of force. That is my ultimate hope.

Politics

My political leaning is pretty much impossible to pin down in today's party landscape.  The closest would certainly be Ron Paul's "conservatism" though I think his point of view makes him much more "radical" than "conservative" compared with the political mainstream. But if you think conservative means "status quo" which now includes support for military interventionism, epic civil-liberties abuses, social engineering, government moralism and quasi-fascist corporatism, you can count me out.  By the same token, I find a great deal of common ground with many "liberal" thinkers from Robert Scheer at Truthdig.com to Glenn Greenwald at Salon.com.

I generally prefer "Classical Liberal" as a label since it provokes questions and lacks the baggage of "conservative" or even "libertarian" in some ways.... for now.  I'm open to change as I learn and grow.  I simply ask that you, the reader, not ascribe to me any ideas that I haven't put out there directly.  Guilt by association is lame hackery.

My Tone and Intent

I'm blogging as a way to work out my thoughts and hopefully get useful criticism that will help me be a better thinker and a more open person.  Much of my reading and writing is about economics, but I ultimately believe that ethics are the core of any social discussion.  So this really is a philosophic and educational exercise.

I'm a passionate guy that feels deep concern for what I perceive to be injustice.  I'll post it when I see it and hopefully people can fill in the missing details or correct my mistaken perceptions.  But ultimately, I want to stay open and avoid hacking it up.  The incentive for hackery and intentional hyperbole are strong. It's cathartic and tends to attract more attention.  But I really am trying to keep that kind of intellectual rigidity/dishonesty out of play. 

Socrates was a smart guy.  So was F A Hayek.  Both were smart enough to know the tremendous limits of their own knowledge.  I'm going to try to follow their lead because after all...

...what the hell do I know?