The Ransberger Pivot
inherently comparative. The same thing is true about politics : to show that libertarianism is the best alternative, you must contrast it to statist alternatives. Government is inefficient and does not work. If you show this truth over and over in all domains, then it becomes inescapable.
There is a less scrupulous tactic used by statists, which is to try to find the "weak point" of your ideology. If they can just get you on one question you can't answer, or one answer that they don't like, then libertarianism must be false.
In this case, you have to eventually stop answering questions and ask them point blank what their choice is : their own freedom, or the state's power to make decisions for them. That is the fundamental question. Discussion about issues is very important, but is not a standard that permits us to choose between ideologies. What permits us to choose between ideologies is how well one compares to another.
When arguing for libertarianism, the truth is on your side. Use this effectively by turning statist arguments and questions from their emotionalist components and into the underlying rational desires that libertarianism addresses.
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