Organization: University of Maine System
Date: Wednesday, 8 Apr 1992 22:42:38 EDT
From: Nicholas C. Hester <IA80024@MAINE.MAINE.EDU>
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.politics
Subject: 1992 Libertarian Platform part 4


------------------------------- Begin Part Four -------------------------------


                         IV. FOREIGN AFFAIRS

American foreign policy should seek an America at peace with the world
and the defense  -- against  attack  from  abroad  --  of  the  lives,
liberty, and  property  of  the  American  people  on  American  soil.
Provision of such defense must respect the individual rights of people
everywhere.



The principle of  non-intervention should guide  relationships between
governments.  The  United  States  government  should  return  to  the
historic  libertarian  tradition  of  avoiding  entangling  alliances,
abstaining totally from  foreign quarrels and  imperialist adventures,
and  recognizing  the   right  to  unrestricted   trade,  travel,  and
immigration.


                         A. DIPLOMATIC POLICY


1. NEGOTIATIONS

The important principle in foreign policy should be the elimination of
intervention by the  United States government  in the affairs of other
nations.  We would  negotiate  with  any  foreign  government  without
necessarily conceding moral legitimacy to that government.  We favor a
drastic  reduction  in   cost  and  size   of  our  total   diplomatic
establishment.  In addition,  we favor the  repeal of the  Logan  Act,
which prohibits private  American citizens from engaging in diplomatic
negotiations with foreign governments.

2. INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL AND FOREIGN INVESTMENTS

We recognize that  foreign governments might  violate  the  rights  of
Americans traveling, living,  or owning property abroad, just as those
governments violate the  rights of their own citizens.  We condemn all
such violations, whether the victims are U.S. citizens or not.

Any effort, however,  to extend the  protection of the  United  States
government to U.S.   citizens when they  or their property fall within
the jurisdiction of  a foreign government  involves potential military
intervention.  We therefore  call upon the United States government to
adhere rigidly to  the principle that  all U.S. citizens travel, live,
and own property  abroad at their  own risk.  In particular, we oppose
-- as unjust  tax-supported subsidy --  any protection of the  foreign
investments of U.S. citizens or businesses.

The issuance of  U.S. passports should  cease.  We look forward  to an
era in which  American citizens and  foreigners can travel anywhere in
the world without  a passport.  We  aim to restore a  world  in  which
there are no  passports, visas, or  other  papers  required  to  cross
borders.  So long  as U.S. passports are issued, they should be issued
to all individuals  without discrimination and  should not be  revoked
for any reason.

3. HUMAN RIGHTS

We condemn the  violations of human  rights in all nations  around the
world.  We particularly  abhor the widespread  and increasing  use  of
torture for interrogation  and  punishment.   We  call  upon  all  the
world's  governments   to   fully   implement   the   principles   and
prescriptions contained in  this platform and  thereby usher in a  new
age of  international  harmony  based  upon  the  universal  reign  of
liberty.

Until such a global triumph for liberty, we support both political and
revolutionary actions by  individuals and groups  against  governments
that violate rights.   We recognize the  right of all people to resist
tyranny and defend  themselves and their rights.  We condemn, however,
the use of  force, and especially  the use of terrorism,  against  the
innocent, regardless of whether such acts are committed by governments
or by political and revolutionary groups.

The violation of  rights and liberty  by other governments  can  never
justify foreign intervention  by the United States government.  Today,
no government is  innocent of violating  human rights and liberty, and
none can approach  the issue with  clean hands.  In keeping  with  our
goal of peaceful  international relations, we  call  upon  the  United
States government to  cease its hypocrisy and its sullying of the good
name of human rights.  Only private individuals and organizations have
any place speaking out on this issue.

4. WORLD GOVERNMENT

We support withdrawal of the United States government from, and an end
to its financial  support for, the  United Nations.   We  oppose  U.S.
government participation in  any world or international government. We
oppose any treaty under which individual rights would be violated.

5. SECESSION

We recognize the  right to political  secession.   This  includes  the
right  to  secession   by  political  entities,   private  groups,  or
individuals.  Exercise of  this right, like  the exercise of all other
rights, does not remove legal and moral obligations not to violate the
rights of others.



                             B. MILITARY


1. MILITARY POLICY

Any U.S. military  policy  should  have  the  objective  of  providing
security for the lives, liberty and property of the American people in
the U.S. against  the  risk  of  attack  by  a  foreign  power.   This
objective should be  achieved as inexpensively as possible and without
undermining the liberties it is designed to protect.

We recognize  that  the  one  significant  existing  risk  of  foreign
aggression against Americans  is the huge  Soviet arsenal  of  nuclear
weapons.  The potential  use of Soviet,  and U.S., nuclear weapons  is
the greatest threat  to  all  the  peoples  of  the  world,  not  only
Americans.  Thus, the  objective should be  to reduce the risk  that a
nuclear war might begin and its scope if it does.

We reject the  policy of massive  nuclear retaliation known as  Mutual
Assured Destruction (MAD),  a policy which ostensibly deters an attack
by threatening to  kill hundreds of millions of innocent people in the
attacker's country and utterly destroy its society.  MAD is immoral on
its face and  impractical because neither  the  U.S.  nor  the  Soviet
government continues to  believe in its credibility.  Furthermore, MAD
provides no defense against irrational or accidental nuclear attack.

We  call  on   both  the  U.S.  and  Soviet  governments  to  continue
negotiations toward mutual  reduction of nuclear armaments, to the end
that all such  weapons  will  ultimately  be  eliminated,  under  such
conditions of verification  as to ensure mutual security.  During arms
reduction negotiations, and to enhance their progress, the U.S. should
begin the retirement  of some of  its nuclear weapons as  proof of its
commitment.  Because the  U.S. has  many  more  thousands  of  nuclear
weapons than are  currently required, beginning  the process  of  arms
reduction would not  jeopardize American security.   U.S.  weapons  of
indiscriminate  mass  destruction  should  be  replaced  with  smaller
weapons aimed solely  at military targets and not designed or targeted
to kill millions of civilians.

We call on  the U.S. government  to remove its  nuclear  weapons  from
Europe.  If European  countries want nuclear  weapons on  their  soil,
they should take full responsibility for them and pay the cost.



We call for  the replacement of MAD, or nuclear war fighting policies,
with  a  policy   of  developing  cost-effective   defensive  systems.
Accordingly, we advocate  termination of the  1972 ABM treaty  or  any
future  agreement  which  would  prevent  defensive  systems  on  U.S.
territory or in earth orbit.

We  call  for  the  withdrawal  of  all  American  military  personnel
stationed abroad, including  the countries of  NATO Europe, Japan, the
Philippines, Central America  and South Korea.  There is no current or
foreseeable risk of  any conventional military  attack on the American
people, particularly from  long distances.  We call for the withdrawal
of the U.S.  from commitments to  engage in war  on  behalf  of  other
governments and  for  abandonment  of  doctrines  supporting  military
intervention such as the Monroe Doctrine and the Reagan Doctrine.

2. PRESIDENTIAL WAR POWERS

We call for  the reform of  the Presidential War Powers Act to end the
President's power to  initiate military action, and for the abrogation
of all Presidential declarations of "states of emergency."  There must
be no further  secret commitments  and  unilateral  acts  of  military
intervention by the Executive Branch.

We favor a  Constitutional amendment limiting the presidential role as
Commander-in-Chief to its original meaning, namely that of the head of
the armed forces  in wartime.  The  Commander-in-Chief role, correctly
understood, confers no additional authority on the President.


                          C. ECONOMIC POLICY


1. FOREIGN AID

We  support  the  elimination  of  tax-supported  military,  economic,
technical,  and  scientific   aid  to  foreign  governments  or  other
organizations.  We support the abolition of government underwriting of
arms sales.  We  further support abolition  of federal  agencies  that
make American taxpayers  guarantors of export-related  loans, such  as
the Export-Import Bank  and the Commodity Credit Corporation.  We also
oppose the participation  of  the  U.S.  government  in  international
commodity  circles  which  restrict  production,  limit  technological
innovation, and raise prices.


We call for  the repeal of  all prohibitions on individuals  or  firms
contributing or selling  goods and services  to any foreign country or
organization.

2. INTERNATIONAL MONEY

We favor withdrawal  of the United States from all international paper
money and other inflationary credit schemes.  We favor withdrawal from
the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

We strongly oppose  any bailout of  foreign  governments  or  American
banks by the  United States, either  by  means  of  the  International
Monetary Fund or through any other governmental device.

3. UNOWNED RESOURCES

We oppose any  recognition of fiat  claims by national governments  or
international bodies to  unclaimed territory.   Individuals  have  the
right to homestead unowned resources, both within the jurisdictions of
national governments and within such unclaimed territory as the ocean,
Antarctica, and the volume of outer space.  We urge the development of
objective international standards  for recognizing homesteaded  claims
to private ownership  of such  forms  of  property  as  transportation
lanes, broadcast bands,  mineral rights,  fishing  rights,  and  ocean
farming rights.  All laws, treaties, and international agreements that
would prevent or  restrict homesteading of unowned resources should be
abolished.  We specifically  hail  the  U.S.  refusal  to  accept  the
proposed Law of  the Sea Treaty  because the treaty  excluded  private
property principles, and we oppose any future ratification.


                      D. INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS


1. COLONIALISM

United States colonialism  has left a legacy of property confiscation,
economic manipulation, and over-extended defense boundaries.  We favor
immediate  self-determination  for   all  people  living  in  colonial
dependencies, such as Samoa, Guam, Micronesia, the Virgin Islands, and
Puerto Rico, to  free  these  people  from  United  States  dominance,
accompanied by the  termination of subsidization of them at taxpayers'
expense.  Land seized  by  the  United  States  government  should  be
returned to its rightful owners.

2. FOREIGN INTERVENTION

We  would  end   the  current  U.S.   government  policy  of   foreign
intervention, including military  and economic  aid,  guarantees,  and
diplomatic meddling. We  would end all  limitation of private  foreign
aid, both military  and  economic.   Voluntary  cooperation  with  any
economic boycott should not be treated as a crime.

We would repeal  the Neutrality  Act  of  1794,  and  all  other  U.S.
neutrality laws  which  restrict  the  efforts  of  Americans  to  aid
overseas organizations fighting to overthrow or change governments.

We would no  longer incorporate foreign  nations into the U.S. defense
perimeter.  We would  cease the creation and maintenance of U.S. bases
and sites for  the  pre-positioning  of  military  material  in  other
countries.  We would  end  the  practice  of  stationing  of  American
military troops overseas.

We make no exceptions to the above.

3. SPACE EXPLORATION

We oppose all  government restrictions upon  voluntary peaceful use of
outer space.  We  condemn all international  attempts  to  prevent  or
limit private exploration,  industrialization, and colonization of the
moon, planets, asteroids, satellite orbits, Lagrange libration points,
or any other  extra-terrestrial resources.  We  specifically call  for
the repudiation of  the U.N. Moon Treaty.  We support the abolition of
the  National   Aeronautics   and   Space   Administration   and   the
privatization of all artificial satellites.



                             V. OMISSIONS

Our silence about  any other particular  government  law,  regulation,
ordinance, directive, edict,  control, regulatory agency, activity, or
machination should not be construed to imply approval.

-------------------------------- End Part Four --------------------------------
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