Self Sabotage and the Libertarian Party
Analysis of Nathaniel Branden's 1979 Talk
"If what you really want is to be a hero in a losing battle, I promise you that you will find a way to help see that the battle is lost." Nathaniel Branden on the Libertarian Party (1979)
In 1979, psychotherapist and author Nathaniel Branden gave a speech on what would happen when the Libertarian movement started to succeed.
Below, you can find the 1979 talk and my analysis of his findings more than 40 years ago.
Branden says this title could have been “How not to self-destruct at the first signs of success” before giving examples of how humans can self-sabotage their efforts based on their self-esteem. One example is a man who became a millionaire, and because of his views that he shouldn’t have that much money, he found ways to lose all the money through bad investments.
Branden says if the LP brings in a lot of members who feel they can only be outcasts, there is a time bomb ticking in the movement that will go off when we start to be successful despite their good intentions.
“How to precipitate catastrophe while seeming to be fighting for libertarianism. That will be the great challenge.”
What kind of mistakes might we make, according to Branden:
Not becoming a good communicator
Engage in flaming rhetoric
Poor planning, poor execution
What are you going to do if deep down you see yourself as a lonely martyr that nobody can really understand except maybe three or four elite but here you are at a convention with two or three thousand people?
At that point, it isn’t enough to have enemies on the outside, you got to have enemies within the party. You have to create your conflicts right here.”
Between the years 2014-2020, I watched the Libertarian Party and the Libertarian Party of Iowa grow tremendously. In 2018, the state party received more media coverage than all the previous 40 years combined! Membership increased, we had record numbers of candidates, more county affiliates, and more money than ever before. During this time, I watched people rebel and leave the party, claiming we were failing despite changing public policy and seeing rapid growth.
Branden speaks about those who love inner-party fighting more than changing public policy.
He warns that if deep down we don’t believe we can reach other minds, we believe we have to accomplish goals through manipulation. “Then we feel like politicians.”
Better to be a big fish in a small pond than a small fish in a big pond. The larger the libertarian movement grows, the bigger the talent competition within the party will grow. …There may be some deposing of kings………
I don’t want people to think this is a radical, Mises, or pragmatist problem. This is something in human nature, and any caucus or group likely has some people who secretly, deep down, want to be a big fish in a small pond. This isn’t a recent issue.
Branden says to drop the notion of villains and assume good intentions. He does, however, suggest that we help each other out and talk honestly about our feelings and fears of success.
How will we handle being part of the real world? How will we handle having our ideas taken seriously? Let us be honest with ourselves and each other. It is going to feel strange at some times. We need honesty.”
So what do you think? Did Branden’s prediction come true?