Fundamental Principles of Libertarianism

Libertarianism is actually pretty easy to understand. It is based on the combination of the following two simple principles:

1. Self-Ownership Principle

Basically you own yourself. You are a soverign individual. You are not owned by another person, another group of pople, or a government. You are entitled to the full fruits of your labor. You are not 30% partially owned by state, and hence do not owe the government 30% of your salary. You should be able to engage in any activities you wish to as long as you don't initate force against others. You should not be forced to do anything you don't want to do.

2. Non-Agression Principle

That's the only rule that we humans really need to abide by. Any person, group of people, or government is not allowed to initiate the use of force against another person, group of people, or government. The only legitimate use of force is in response to another's initiation of or threat of force. Goverments frequenty ignore this basic rule. The state acts in violation of the rule all the time (Iraq, for instance).

Thats it, its pretty simple. Just refer to these two principles to determine how a libertarian would approach any issue.