libertarian cranks

Q: Who could possibly be more annoying than a preening self-righteous liberal?

A: Why, a preening self-righteous movement libertarian, of course.

Reason Online has a poll of prominent libertarian and libertarian-leaning pundits, on their choice for president in next month's election. There are a few entries from blogosphere heavy hitters: I learned that Glenn Reynolds voted Libertarian in 2000 (I'd pegged him as a Gore voter), and that Eugene Volokh votes Republican on principle, as he finds the party's approach “generally more sound” than that of the Democrats. There are a few other interesting entries—like Camille Paglia's, for one. But the overall impression is that of a sorry collection of self-deluded dorks.

I'm not sure what is more pathetic: the whole pox on both your houses, I'm voting Badnarik because the stakes in this election aren't so high as to make me give up my ideological purity, or I'm so voting for Kerry, because I'm really a liberal but pretending to be a libertarian makes me sexier, in a camp sort of way.

But the Sully Award for Witless Hyperbole goes to, well, Andrew Sullivan's contribution.

2004 vote: I can’t vote because I’m not a citizen. So I can only “support” candidates, and I’m not supporting anyone in this election.

2000 choice: Bush.

Most embarrassing choice: I’m unembarrassed by all my choices.

Uhm. Unless Sullivan renounced his U.S. citizenship along with his support for President Bush, he is too a citizen.

Oh, wait: He couldn't possibly be still sulking over a “right” that he never even had, now could he?

Memo to Andrew: the martyr act is wearing a little thin. And that whole I’m unembarrassed by all my choices is a bit too precious, don't you think? Especially as thus far you have voted in precisely one U.S. presidential election?

Twit, indeed.

(Reason link via EURSOC. And maybe, just maybe, if I get some sleep I'll be less cranky myself.)

UPDATE: Hmm. After a much-needed nap, I googled for evidence that Sullivan is, in fact, a naturalized U.S. citizen. And found pretty much nothing.

Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence—and I could swear that he became a citizen in the time since I began, and then stopped, reading his work. But perhaps I'm thinking of John Derbyshire.