A word of caution for state's 'invaders'

Original article:	www.telegraph-nh.com/Main.asp?SectionID=31 &SubSectionID=358&ArticleID=90354
Date:	10/03/03
Title:	A word of caution for state's 'invaders'
Author:	Editorial
Publication:	Telegraph

A word of caution for state's 'invaders'

Editorial • 10/03/03

The libertarians are coming - invited or not. New Hampshire by a vote of libertarians nationwide is their first choice for their "Free State Project."

They aim to attract up to 20,000 of like-minded individuals to move to New Hampshire over the next three years to eventually "revolutionize" its government. By that, they mean to shrink government by privatizing many of its services and by expanding personal liberties. They are also highly tax-averse.

KEY POINTS

BACKGROUND: New Hampshire is the state that libertarians have adopted for their project to "revolutionize" government.

CONCLUSION: This is an open country and libertarians may move to the Granite State at will, but they shouldn't be surprised if their far-out ideas don't go over with the rest of the population.

Does anyone remember being asked if we wanted our state government to be taken over in this fashion? Who is asking for this invasion?

How nice of the libertarians to attempt a takeover, even when they cooked up the idea without consultation with the non-libertarian inhabitants.

Many of us think our state government is already lean and we differ with the libertarians on what an essential service is.

Take schools. Some libertarians believe parents should pay tuition for their children's schooling or home school them. They propose raising scholarships for those who can't afford to pay tuitions by collecting private donations.

Most New Hampshire residents, we believe, think that a public school education open to all up through grade 12 is one of the mainstays of a democracy. Nobody has to go without or beg for financial support because the schooling is paid through tax dollars.

Some libertarians also advocate decriminalizing marijuana use, prostitution and other "victimless" crimes. And they're big on gun rights.

The Libertarians, many of whom can afford to be self-sufficient because of their upscale incomes, are part of a fringe political group.

The few libertarians who have run for high public office in New Hampshire in recent years have reaped slim support. So plumping up their numbers should, in theory, give them greater leverage at the ballot box.

America is an open country and the libertarians have a right to move to New Hampshire as well as any other group. Yet New Hampshire residents aren't required to welcome them with open arms or to embrace their ideological form of escapism.

Whether 20,000 of them will actually pull up stakes and move to New Hampshire remains to be seen. The state's motto, "Live Free or Die," is a stirring one, but most of us who endure the daily grind to make do know it shouldn't be taken literally.

So while Gov. Craig Benson, who is working hard to pile up conservative credentials, may encourage the libertarians to relocate to New Hampshire, these newcomers should be aware that other residents of the state will view their many proposed changes with a broad streak of old-fashioned Yankee skepticism.

It's nothing personal - just a difference of opinion over the role of government and individuals in an increasingly complex society.

A word of caution for state's 'invaders'

A word of caution for state's 'invaders'

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