The Bionic Mosquito Versus the Bleeding Heart Libertarians

The Bionic Mosquito has been a persistent critic of Bleeding Heart Libertarians. The Mosquito believes in a simple principle: libertarians cannot support violations of libertarian rights. Libertarians, then, cannot support a basic income guarantee, since this violates property rights. Matt Zwolinski, a philosopher at the University of San Diego, has written favorably about the basic income guarantee; and, as you might suspect, the Mosquito has sharply attacked him.

In a post that appeared yesterday, though, the Mosquito wonders whether there are grounds for hope. Zwolinski now says that there are problems with the basic income guarantee. Has he seen the light and embraced correct libertarian principles? Unfortunately, he has not. Zwolinski’s doubts about the guarantee concern how the measure would be implemented: How would we know the correct amount of the guarantee? Which programs should it replace? Would it be likely to lead to increased opposition to immigration? Zwolinski still does not reject violations of property rights as wrong in principle, and The Mosquito has no use for him.

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9:37 am on May 19, 2015