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Who was the "Founding Father" of Libertarianism?

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Daniel J. Sanchez:

M-la-maudite:
and then, Diogene Laertes?

Diogenes Laertius was a biographer of philosophers.  Do you mean Diogenes the Cynic?

M-la-maudite:
IMHO it still doesn't make him a full-blown libertarian.

I don't think you need to be a complete libertarian to be considered the father of it.

If one wouldn't be considered a libertarian if he was around today, I wouldn't classify him as the father of libertarianism.

"Every decent man is ashamed of the government he lives under."  - H. L. Mencken

 

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Daniel J. Sanchez:

M-la-maudite:
and then, Diogene Laertes?

Diogenes Laertius was a biographer of philosophers.  Do you mean Diogenes the Cynic?

Yes, i do - an unforgivable mistake -;(

... the fact that the one is mostly known through the writtings of the other didn't help; still, all my apologies for the confusion!

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Richard Chambers:

Daniel J. Sanchez:

M-la-maudite:
IMHO it still doesn't make him a full-blown libertarian.

I don't think you need to be a complete libertarian to be considered the father of it.

If one wouldn't be considered a libertarian if he was around today, I wouldn't classify him as the father of libertarianism.

 

The same for me; at least, to the extent that i wouldn't classify as the father of libertarianism someone who couldn't possibly espouse contemporary libertarianism if he were living during our times. Locke would irremediably disagree with the philosophical (in particular, meta-ethical) grounds, the basic ethical views and the political consequences of libertarianism.

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Of course libertarianism (liberalism) have developed for a long time, bur the "father" I would say is John Locke.

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M-la-maudite:

The same for me; at least, to the extent that i wouldn't classify as the father of libertarianism someone who couldn't possibly espouse contemporary libertarianism if he were living during our times. Locke would irremediably disagree with the philosophical (in particular, meta-ethical) grounds, the basic ethical views and the political consequences of libertarianism.

To be the "father" I don't think that it is required that one would agree with everything that has come to be classified as libertarianism.

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ama gi replied on Mon, Feb 2 2009 3:54 PM

Urukagina

"As long as there are sovereign nations possessing great power, war is inevitable."

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Lincoln replied on Wed, Jun 22 2011 8:41 PM

C.H. Hellstrom:

Of course libertarianism (liberalism) have developed for a long time, bur the "father" I would say is John Locke.

Really? He is the earliest libertarian thinkers? 

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"The first person to describe himself as a libertarian was Joseph Déjacque, an early French anarchist communist. The word stems from the French word libertaire, and was used to evade the French ban on anarchist publications." ~ Wiki

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