APAULed

Tough break today for the libertarian "message," thanks to the "messenger." Being an exceedingly cynical "small-l" libertarian means never having to say I'm sorry for Ron Paul.

But regrets? Some of them have a few. Andrew Sullivan, Arnold Kling, and Matt Welch at the bottom most closely share my sentiments.

Election fallout, of course, will be zilch, as was the Paul candidacy as anything other than a freewheeling vehicle into mainstream cluck-cluckery.

Here's hoping the message has stronger and longer legs than the messenger; but that should have been the hope all along.

Vote Note

"I doubt that libertarianism will be advanced by any campaign for national office. I suspect that the best way to advance libertarianism is not to compete for government office but to compete against government."

--Arnold Kling, "Ron Paul: My Two Cents" at EconLog