Joe Rogan Getting Andrew Yang Wrong is a Symptom of Much Bigger Problems | Moral Libertarian View | #YangGang

Welcome to Moral Libertarian View, a program where we discuss news events that are worth looking at from the point of view of the Moral Libertarian idea, that is, every individual should have Equal and Maximum Moral Agency in their lives. I hope you subscribe if you are interested.

Today, I want to talk about the recent drama surrounding Joe Rogan and Andrew Yang, and realizations I've had through this episode. Basically, it all started when Joe Rogan mischaracterized something that Andrew Yang said. In a previous interview, when asked about the fact that cattle is responsible for a substantial amount of greenhouse gas emissions, Yang floated the possibility of putting a tax on cattle, which he then went on to predict that it would reduce beef consumption. It's not something I personally agree with, but I can see that it's a logical extension of his carbon tax stance, which is to put the economic costs of pollution back into market calculations. The part where he said it would reduce beef consumption was just basic market economics logic, where something that is more expensive becomes less in demand. There's no conspiracy to social engineer anything here.

However, Joe Rogan appeared to mischaracterize Yang's position as wanting to stop people from eating beef, or perhaps, even turning everyone vegetarian. Which is nonsense, because Yang isn't even a vegetarian himself! Anyway, Rogan went on and on about what would happen if people were not allowed to eat meat anymore, like how there would be nutrition deficiencies, and how cattle ranches everywhere are going to go out of business. I mean, relax Joe! Yang isn't going to lead society down that path, nor is any reasonable politician! Even if the carbon tax is extended to cattle, and that's surely a long long way away, the effect would be that beef would be slightly more expensive, and some families may decide to swap it for chicken or pork once a week. No cattle ranches are going to go out of business!

Many people in the Yang Gang have accused Rogan of smearing Yang here. I actually don't agree with this. Rogan was nothing but nice to Yang when he went on the podcast earlier this year. I think Rogan genuinely misunderstood Yang's position, and was genuinely worried. I think it's great that the Yang Gang mobilized to correct this misunderstanding before it could spread too far. But the fact that Rogan was so worried that a politician may stop people from eating beef deserves a moment of reflection.

Ten years ago, anyone making such a suggestion would just be laughed out of town. The idea that politicians would stop people from eating meat in a country like America used to be the stuff of stand up comedians. But it seems that some people aren't so sure anymore. Many people seem to have a very genuine fear of top-down social engineering from the elites. And I can't blame them either. The past decade has seen the introduction of many new social rules about what you can or can't say, what you can or can't do, what you can or can't buy ethically, and all of them in the name of some form of common good. The effect is that individual liberty has been limited for the sake of collective ends, and many people are genuinely worried where this might lead us. As a Moral Libertarian, I would say that people are rightly fearful that they are losing their fair share of Moral Agency as indepdently thinking individuals. Of course, I believe that Yang isn't the type who would support this social engineering, but then, many people out there have become so skeptical that they can't differentiate anymore. This has essentially created a climate where anyone raising any new idea could potentially be the enemy, which also explains why some right-leaning people have come to fear anything that is not standard conservatism. They've essentially become reactionary, in the face of those forcing change by peer pressure.

My point is, I don't think the road we're heading down here is good for either individual liberty or the social fabric. People rightly value their individual liberty, and using peer pressure to force social change is never a good idea. Moreover, it ends up scaring a lot of people towards the reactionary end of things, and through reducing mutual trust, fractures the social fabric in the process. While Rogan did misrepresent Yang, which I'm not very happy about, the fact that a credible public personality could raise the fear that a politician may stop people from eating meat tells us there's something really wrong with the way Western society is heading. We really need more unity in liberty, and less division and fear. The only way to do that is by repsecting that every individual should have Equal and Maxiumum Moral Agency in their lives.