Libertarianism is a political philosophy that holds that individuals should be allowed complete freedom of action as long as they do not infringe on the freedom of others. This is usually taken by libertarians to mean that no one may initiate coercion, which they define as the use of physical force, the threat of such, or the use of fraud to prevent individuals from having wilful use of their person or property. In the economic realm, they generally oppose taxation and government regulation of business activities, and aim to reduce the size and scope of government. To the extent that libertarians advocate any government at all, its functions tend to be limited to protecting civil liberties and economic liberties (by protecting private property and a free market) through a police force, a military (with no conscription), and the courts.

Read the rest of this article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libertarianism

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1876: Colonel George Armstrong Custer is killed at the Battle of the Little Big Horn. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Little_Big_Horn)

1950: The Korean War, between the United Nations and North Korean forces, began. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_War)

1991: Croatia and Slovenia declared their independence from Yugoslavia. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croatia)

1993: Kim Campbell was chosen as leader of the Progressive Conservative Party and became the first female Prime Minister of Canada. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Campbell)

1996: The Khobar Towers bombing in Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia, left 19 U.S. servicemen dead. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khobar_Towers_bombing)

_____________________ Wikiquote of the day:

"Political language— and with variations this is true of all political parties, from Conservatives to Anarchists— is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind." -- George Orwell (http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_Orwell)