But really, that is a small part of the whole nanny state, big brother thing – which really bugs most libertarians.

I don’t like laws against the right to die, the right to doctor assisted suicide, the right to pursue whatever healthcare treatment I want (with informed consent), the right to buy a big gulp, or a sugar drink, the right to drink alcohol if over 18, the right to buy a cigarette if over 18, or ingest any drug I want (if over 18 and not driving under the influence) and laws which force me to buy stuff I don’t want or need.

I am sure there are other laws which irk me – but those are off the top of my head.

The government mandate really bugs me – because if the government can force me to buy health care, what can’t they force me to buy?

Imagine if every New Yorker had to buy automobile insurance – the ones who don’t own a motor vehicle would scream bloody murder. I bet the cost of automobile insurance would be lower if everybody who doesn’t drive one was in the pool.

If everybody had to own an automobile, everybody would have to have a driver’s license. Boom – voter ID laws issues solved!

Forcing people to buy stuff they don’t need is the solution to many many problems. I predict it will spread far and wide over the coming decades.

Anyway, not really on the Libertarians, by and large. Bill Weld is an example of the sort of Libertarian you are talking about. He does not live in rural New Hampshire. Also, you are probably talking about the candidate. I’m talking about the 41 voters. Maybe one would have voted for the Democrat, causing it to be a tie.

I think you mean to say that Lerner won BY 39 votes, whereas the Libertarian won [only] 41. It is not appropriate to assume all Libertarian voters are “right wing”; some of them care deeply about such non-right social issues as ending the War on Some Drugs.