How Libertarian Agenda Drowns Out Rational Approaches to Major Social Problems Like Guns and Auto

http://www.alternet.org/civil-liberties/how-libertarian-agenda-drowns-out-rational-approaches-major-social-problems-guns-and

How the Libertarian Agenda Drowns Out Rational Approaches to Major Social Problems Like Guns and Auto Accidents



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Of course, the battle between public safety and individual rights has been particularly heated in the area of gun control. The National Rifle Association and other opponents of strict gun laws use familiar libertarian arguments about the right to bear arms -- in this case codified in the Second Amendment. Despite several recent high-profile shootings involving mentally ill individuals who were able to obtain guns, most notably the 2012 massacre in Newtown, Connecticut that killed 26, legislators have had great difficulty enacting more restrictive laws.

Similarly, deaths and serious injuries caused by reckless or distracted drivers who are not drunk have also proven hard to legislate. In New York State, current laws permit criminal prosecution only if the driver has previous driving offenses or committed a second violation at the time of the crash. Efforts to strengthen these laws have generated traditional arguments: such deaths are unintentional "accidents." It is wrong to prosecute drivers for being careless if they are not malicious; and, most notably, a certain number of deaths are the "price one pays" for running a busy, congested city like New York.

Given my background in public health research, I am very familiar with these types of warnings about limiting public health powers. But as someone who has now personally experienced a tragic, unnecessary death, I worry that the banner of libertarianism too often drowns out rational, middle-of-the road approaches to genuine harms. It is hard to imagine anyone who has lost a relative or dear friend in such a manner to see such innocent deaths as the price of doing business. Indeed, it is downright chilling to suggest this. When cries for preserving our rights drown out the cries of grieving parents and children, something has gone very wrong.

Working closely with legislators and other activists, my sister was able to get New York's City Council to pass "Cooper's Law," which mandates that the local Traffic and Limousine Commission suspend the license of a taxi driver who has killed or seriously maimed a pedestrian and do a formal investigation. There was initially typical reflexive opposition to this law on libertarian grounds but, thankfully, saner heads prevailed.