CORN FLAKE FRIDAY: Dave Hollist

Remember, last week I said that it wasn't enough to post something monementually stupid on a web site or blog to become a Corn Flake. It requires an action in public, where the voters can look, point, and say, "See, Martha, that's whut all dem Liberal-tarians iz like."

Today I give you Dave Hollist, bus driver and student of the works of Ayn Rand... who is currently making his third run for President of the United States.

That's right, three.

And to give you some idea of his success, at the 2004 Libertarian National Convention, he got, on the first ballot... one vote.

One.

Out of over eight hundred.

Even Jeffrey Diket, who in his nomination speech said point blank he only wanted the votes of those who agreed with him on every point, got more votes than that. (Four, actually.)

Oh, Dave did a little better in 2000, it's true, but he was never even close to challenging Harry Browne. At this point he's not even taken seriously within the Party... mostly because he's a one-note candidate.

And what is his one note? Contract Insurance. (If you come late to this post and this URL doesn't work, I apologize. This site has moved around a LOT over the years, but the content has remained mostly identical- as has the presentation.)

To cut through a ton of rambling text, here's the core of his message: government should be regarded primarily as a guarantor for voluntary contracts. The cost of enforcing contracts would be paid by "contract insurance", i. e. a stipend paid by everyone who enters into contracts to the government. No one would be forced to pay this stipend. Those who opt out will, instead, be quite simply locked out of the court and law enforcement system. Not to worry, though- civic-minded volunteers will no doubt protect those who cannot protect themselves from murderers, rapists, etc.

Now, this sounds quite anarchist indeed... until you read further down and discover that Hollist has no intention whatever of cutting any government program. Instead he asks that the government make them all voluntary.

So- on the one hand, with a one-bullet solution for the evils of government, he alienates the moderates in the party. On the other hand, with his stated intent to preserve most of government as it is, he alienates the anarchists and radicals. Finally, he has no material support, no campaign organization, and no prior elective experience- alienating the pragmatists in the party.

As the 2004 convention demonstrated, this doesn't leave very much at all...

... but he still goes out and campaigns, actively, outside the party, for the Presidency.

Dave Hollist for President, this week's Corn Flake!