Why Libertarianism Is Not Mainstream (But Should Be)

We can make wiser policy decisions by asking the libertarian questions no one wants to ask: What protects this program from corruption? What are the unintended consequences? Do we have the right to force others to comply with this rule?

Source: Why Libertarianism Is Not Mainstream (But Should Be) - Foundation for Economic Education

So what is a libertarian exactly? Some would say that anyone who supports any kind of government at all is not libertarian. Really, though, that's just anarchy. I tend to think libertarian means that you support only the minimum amount of government absolutely necessary. That amount may be 0 but we won't really know until we get there. I consider myself libertarian and support slashing government until it starts causing more problems than it solves. Maybe that's 0...maybe it's a little (but not much) more. In any case, it is certainly far, far less than we have today.

Libertarianism could be thought of in a relative way in the following sense. If you believe in a net reduction of government spending, taxation, and/or power, then you are more libertarian than 99% of those in power today.

This article has another pretty good definition. Libertarianism is "skepticism that the government has the authority and competence to solve a wide range of extremely difficult social and economic problems"