It’s funny how a small group of libertarians are rallying ’round the flag of something called “feel-good” libertarianism as the new jingle in the land of the free and the home of self-imposed anarchy.
The new convictions of the happiness collective include never, ever writing anything that can be construed as negative, pessimistic, or a “polemic rant.” That leaves out just about any topic of interest to libertarians, such as the crimes of the industrial food machine; the shenanigans of the Federal Reserve and the manipulation of the entire monetary system; the abominations of the militarized police state; the state’s numerous wars and killing fields; the longevity (or lack thereof) of the stock market bubble; how ObamaCare will destroy your freedom of choice regarding your own health; and … [fill in almost any topic here]. Unless, of course, you only write about or discuss the positive aspects of escaping the negative aspects of statism and totalitarian rule that we libertarians, apparently, write about far too often.
So when I expose truths, connect dots, and present facts for others to ponder on their own, I am a pessimist and a polemicist – and this goes for all others who write the same, not just me. I get the nasty emails, and also, some friendly folks are kind enough to send along some of the more funny criticisms of me that are, indeed, polemic rants as they stand on their own. This kind of denunciation is nothing more than a colorless blip on my radar map which is usually followed by a … forgetaboutit.
Yet each time I write something positive – especially about what is bubbling up in Detroit – I bring out the Detroit-hating trolls who claim I am ignorant, blinded by the obvious, and sometimes I am just plain stupid. And this criticism comes from people who have never stepped a foot onto Detroit soil, or even folks who have popped in and out of town a few times over the years, which, in their mind, is equated with “I know Detroit.” <<eye roll please>>
Today I had one person – who claims the libertarian mantle – posting on my Facebook page that Detroit is a city of “crime, poverty, leftist politicians…” I do not make that up. Exact quote. If that doesn’t describe every city in America, as well as just about any plot of land in America, then rub the inside of my ears with jelly and roll me in an anthill. Then I received a follow-up post of the proof that Detroit sucks: yet another tediously conventional, mainstream-garbage article that describes Detroit as “one of the ten worst….” Of course, the positive “10 best” articles, such as this one on FOX, that include Detroit as a “best” are never seen as relevant to the boorish naysayer nabobs of negativism. So yes, I continue to be flabbergasted by the ignorance of people who just want to hate some place they have never been because it makes them feel better about the statist plot of land that they occupy.
Why do they bother? If some topic does not interest you, I would think you would move on to that which does interest you.
So you see folks, it’s not always easy to be positive – we get hated for that too. But as far as the Detroit Haters who know absolutely nothing about Detroit other than what they pull off the conventional media behind their laptops: they do nothing to affect me or the fact that I will continue to write about how Detroiters and entrepreneurs who are flocking to Detroit have the grit to keep moving forward with underground and above-ground economies that function and thrive in spite of the fact that we have the same crime, leftist politicians, and poverty that are experienced everywhere else in the U.S., especially the centrally-planned, Marxist-dominated urban areas. Indeed, folks like Jane Jacobs and Edward C. Banfield were on top of this, oh … a mere 40 and 50+ years ago?