Preamble

As Libertarians, we defend each person’s right to engage in any activity that is peaceful and honest and we welcome the diversity that freedom brings. We seek a world of liberty; a world in which all individuals control their own lives and are never forced to compromise their values or sacrifice their property. We believe that no conflict exists between civil order and individual rights and that individuals, groups, or governments should not initiate force against other individuals, groups, or governments.

Principles

Life – We believe that all individuals have the right to control their own lives and live in whatever manner they choose, as long as they do not interfere with the identical rights of others.

Liberty – The only proper functions of government are the protection of the people from actual foreign or domestic threats to their lives and freedoms; and the protection of their individual rights, namely — life, property, and liberty of speech and action.

Property – The only economic system compatible with the protection of individual human rights is the free market; therefore, the fundamental right of individuals to own property and to enjoy the rewards of their just earnings should not be compromised.

We advocate phasing out taxes on incomes, personal property, and real property, along with corresponding decreases in the size of government. We advocate phasing out taxes on corporations and businesses.

We advocate limits on the time any elected official may serve in office.

We advocate election law reforms that make it easier for the people to nominate and finance the election of the candidates of their choice.

We believe the right to keep and bear arms should not be infringed. We therefore oppose all laws which tax or otherwise restrict the ownership, open or concealed carry, manufacture, transfer, or sale of firearms or ammunition. We further oppose all laws requiring registration of firearms. We also cannot ignore the clear lessons from history of the suffering which can fall upon a disarmed people.

We believe that children are a special group of citizens possessing fundamental rights involving their life and health. However, until they reach the age of legal responsibility, their other rights are limited and their parents or guardians are responsible for their actions and upbringing. Therefore, the rights and authority that parents or guardians need to fulfill their child raising responsibilities must be respected, but never at the expense of the child’s life and health.
Since private education is today outperforming public education at half the cost, we call for the phase out of all state and federal involvement in education. We therefore endorse “School Choice”.
We strongly support all private and voluntary charity, including mutual aid and fraternal societies, religious and secular non-profits, and the work of dedicated individuals across Wisconsin who assist those in need. Accordingly, we oppose all laws that limit, hinder, or crowd-out these efforts. We oppose the expansion of taxpayer-funded welfare programs, as unjustified and ineffective. We support efforts to phase out these failed government programs.

The federal government often uses the threat of withholding “federal” funds to coerce states into specific actions. We strongly urge elected officials of Wisconsin to resist such pressure and applaud them when they do. We believe that this threat violates the U.S. Constitution and the concept of a Republic.

A clean environment is in everyone’s interest. Our legal system should protect public and private property from pollution. The right of property owners to prosecute any polluter under trespass, nuisance, and negligence laws should be reinstated. It follows that bureaucracies should not be allowed to harass alleged environmental violators or restrict their direct access to just treatment under the judicial system.

We support the maximum possible privatization of all publicly owned transportation systems and therefore oppose the creation of any new publicly funded or managed transportation systems.

Because only actions that infringe on the rights of others can properly be termed “crimes”, we favor the repeal of federal, state, and local laws restricting our fundamental freedom to govern our own lives. In particular, we advocate:

The repeal of laws restricting the production, sale, possession, or use of prohibited drugs and medicines. The repeal of laws regarding a minimum drinking age which are in conflict with the legally recognized age for maturity and responsibility. The repeal of laws restricting consensual sexual relations between adults. The repeal of laws regulating or prohibiting gambling. The decriminalization of assisted suicide.

We believe the problems with our current health care system are due to government interference and mandates and that any government program to “provide” health care to some at the expense of others will most certainly reduce the overall quality, responsiveness, and individuality of health care for everyone. It would also reduce the influx of the most talented people our society has to offer into the medical profession and diminish the exemplary worldwide progress and leadership our medical system has demonstrated. For these reasons, we advocate the free enterprise system as the only system capable of making quality, affordable, individualized medical care available to all.

We believe that free individuals may not be compelled to authorize the assignment, collection or dissemination of personal and private information on themselves; nor may any rights and privileges available to others be denied to them for using such discretion.

We oppose the granting of subsidies, tax credits, special privileges, etc., on private individuals, businesses, corporations, or industries by the government, including in the name of “economic development” or “job creation.” We believe that lower taxes and regulatory costs should be extended across the board to all businesses in Wisconsin, on an equal basis, and that the government picking winners and losers in the market is a recipe for corruption. We advocate the abolition of the government economic development corporations, and oppose the uses of special tax districts to fund private for-profit projects such as stadiums and arenas.

We advocate a free, dynamic agriculture market with every possible and desirable crop being produced and sold using any method that meets with the approval of the buying public that does not spread external harm. Private sector labeling must be allowed to replace government-mandated labeling — consumers will be better served with competitive certification and labels and the ability to reject products whose labeling fails to meet their personal standards. Private individuals or corporations must bear full responsibility for damages they inflict on their neighbors with unwanted externalities including pesticides, herbicides, and genetic modifications.

We believe in free trade and a market driven by consumer demand. We believe the best
regulator for the marketplace is a well informed consumer with a lot of choices.

We deplore the Federal and State governments’ continued paternalistic and exploitative policies
toward the Native American. We call for the abolition of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which
throughout its history has sought forcibly to make Native Americans wards of the State by
destroying their individuality and traditional culture. We call for an end to Federal, State, and
local interference in the property rights and civil liberties of Native Americans. We call on the
State and Federal governments to honor all current treaty obligations.

We believe that no officer, agent or official at any level of government should have immunity
from prosecution or civil action when they violate the federal and/or state constitutional rights of
an individual just because they work for the federal government (absolute immunity) or there
isn’t “clearly established law” (qualified immunity). All cases where the constitutional rights have
been violated by any person employed by government should be handled on its own merits.

We believe that no individual should have any of their assets seized by any level of government without there first being a charge levied against the individual and a conviction reached on those charges that specifies that assets should be seized in direct relation to the crime(s) commitied

State entities requiring an individual to get a license to perform their job restricts access for
individuals to enter a profession. State license requirements can include training that has nothing
to do with what the licensee will be doing. We believe that the state should work to reduce or
eliminate state-mandated occupational licensing and eliminate vague standards like “good moral
character” when assessing individuals applying for any remaining licenses.

State and local governments should be prohibited from using code violation fines as a revenue
stream and/or as a way to harass or stifle residents. State and local governments should also be
prohibited from using outside firms to collect code enforcement fines who have the incentive to
drag on court cases in order to increase their botiom line. Code enforcement fines should not be
excessive per the Excessive Fines Clause of the U.S. Constitution’s Eighth Amendment and article
I, section 6 of the Wisconsin Constitution

Conclusion

While members of the Libertarian Party of Wisconsin advocate abolishing laws governing certain voluntary behaviors, this does not necessarily imply endorsement of such behaviors. We only make the statement that in such matters an individual’s right to free choice must be recognized and the morality of such choices is not a concern of government. It follows that our silence regarding any other government activity should not be interpreted as implying our approval of such activity.

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