Owen Ashworth | The Libertarian Institute

Politicians Can’t Think In the Long-Term

by Owen Ashworth | Sep 11, 2024 | Economics, Featured Articles

I’m a fan of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). For those unaware, this is the most dominant mixed martial arts (MMA) organization in the world. They put on fantastic pay-per-views at least once a month where fighters put every part of their being out there to reach the storybook peak of a world championship belt. There is a very well-known phrase in the MMA community that relates to older fighters who were once phenoms that pulverised all opposition that stood in their way; yet, when they reach their late 30s, what were once sharp weapons turn blunt and performances degrade. All...

European Elites Commit to Their Self-Destruction

by Owen Ashworth | Jul 16, 2024 | Featured Articles, Politics

Much to the dismay of the European elites, the people of Europe appear to be resolutely rejecting the status quo. Right-wing parties are gaining ground in almost every European state as a reaction to the consistent failures of the establishment statists. Economic stagnation plagues much of Europe and shows no sign of improvement despite extensive, record busting stimulus packages that promised to return the continent to steady growth and alleviate much of the harm caused during the pandemic and the financial crash of 2008. This right-wing, anti-establishment revolt runs much deeper; voters...

Smashing the UK’s Statist Mindset

by Owen Ashworth | Jun 19, 2024 | Featured Articles

Mainstream British political thought processes contain an epidemic of dreadful reasoning. Witness the average political interaction between “popular” British parliamentarians and voters, think through the reasoning of the topics discussed, and you will know exactly what is lacking. Unlike the remnants that remain on the American political scene, talk of philosophy and deeper economic beliefs are extinct. The United Kingdom is gripped by an election which acts as the perfect situation for our leaders to breakdown their deeper beliefs so that voters can truly understand whether they identify...

A Libertarian Guide to the United Kingdom General Election

by Owen Ashworth | Jun 5, 2024 | Featured Articles, Politics

The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak, has finally announced there will be an election on July 4. This comes after incessant badgering from every part of the political spectrum, all of whom have been calling for an election for months. It was quite a sad spectacle when the prime minister walked out in front of Downing Street in the pouring rain and essentially fired the starting gun for the race for office. He turned around after making his first pitch of the election to reveal that he was absolutely drenched, looking like a damp rag who has seemingly accepted his fate of...

Britain’s ID Card Proponents Expose Their Own Naivety

by Owen Ashworth | May 2, 2024 | Featured Articles

David Blunkett, the former United Kingdom Home Secretary, appeared on the Politics Live show this week and argued obstinately for the introduction of ID cards, saying “My guess is we will get ID cards under a Labour government." This is quite concerning since the next government is probably going to be Labour, who are currently 20% ahead in the polls. Blunkett claims that it will be easier to stop the illegal immigration issue with the introduction of ID cards, suggesting that migrants would need to show these ID cards to get access to work and other services. He has said that the opposition...

A Free Market Embraces Human Nature

by Owen Ashworth | Apr 3, 2024 | Featured Articles, Libertarianism

Much like the debate around being a glass half full or half empty person, there is split opinion over whether human nature is generally good or bad. Young people are more likely to view human nature as self-serving, unsympathetic, and narrow minded than older generations. In all likelihood, future generations will view each other way more pessimistically than any recent generation before them. The general population's view on human nature is extremely significant in the political arena since it will have a huge impact on the ideology you assign yourself, plus the methods you choose to spread...

What Is ‘Extremism’?

by Owen Ashworth | Mar 25, 2024 | Criminal Justice, Featured Articles

Amidst protests in the United Kingdom that have been going on since October 7, there have been multiple allegations of extemists among the protestors intimidating, harassing, and scaring innocent people who are not involved in the demonstrations. It seems that even MPs are being intimidated, with the Speaker allegedly pushing a vote using a parliamentary procedure that has not been employed for years; he's allegedly been pressured by Labour leader Kier Starmer, who in turn has been allegedly pressured by the extreme wing of his party. In response to these events, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak...

Environmentalists Want to Doom the Developing World

by Owen Ashworth | Mar 5, 2024 | Economics, Featured Articles

Climate change and the environment are becoming top issues in most developed countries. People know that humans are contributing to climate change, so they demand action with more done to preserve our very fragile planet. In the United Kingdom, politicians are pushed more and more every day to put in place measures to achieve net zero emissions as soon as possible and at any cost. If you want to achieve it by 2050, the cost of net zero varies from a gross figure of £1.4 trillion to a much better sounding £12 billion a year. The lower estimates usually come to fruition through, shall we say,...