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Why do I find libertarians to be so socially weird?

Yes, it's a loaded question. But I have tons of friends from across the spectrum, and I've noticed that my libertarian friends tend to be more socially awkward, cold, and less emotionally intelligent than my liberal/conservative friends. I've heard this observation from many other people as well, so it's not just my own private bias. Is there something about people who veer towards autism and libertarianism? There's a link between excess testosterone in the womb and autism, and in many ways, libertarianism seems like the 'hypermasculine' perspective. Also, I know about 20 male libertarians for every female libertarian, which may be related to the testosterone/autism link above. What's going on, in your view?
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categorysociety
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tynamite
tynamite's avatar First things first, let's get our definition of weird, strange and different sorted out. I don't want any confusion.

Different means when two things are not the same. You are different to your mother, but that doesn't make her strange.

Weird means when something is different to another, in a seemingly brushed off way. Autistic people are weird because their awkward behaviour is looked down on. Weird has negative connotations.

Strange means when something is unusual. People from other countries behave strangely, but that doesn't mean they're weird.

In a sentence

The reason why Libertarians are so socially weird, is because they are less prone to suggestion, social pressures, and being sheep. This is because the nature of a Libertarian is to know your shortcomings, and how they work and why they exist.

If you understood my answer, you can stop reading.

What does that mean?

What is social pressure?


Social pressures are unwritten rules that dictate to us in society, how to behave. Nobody has ever said these rules to you, but you know they exist.


  • Men can't stand at adjacent urinals to piss, unless those are the only one left. Men are not allowed to show affection.
  • Women can't go to a traffic light party dressed in green. Women aren't allowed to go outside without doing their hair.
  • People are supposed to hold doors open for others.


Nobody has told you to follow those rules, and nobody has said that they exist, but we all do them, as we are all affected by social pressures. Most people in life follow social pressures without being aware that they exist.

Libertarians follow less social pressures, as they know their shortcomings, and how they work and why they exist. This makes Libertarians weird.

What is suggestion?


Suggestion is the act of presenting us with a choice or option, to make us think or behave in what is being suggested to us. The thing with suggestion, is that when we act on it, we believe it to be purely our own choice, but we don't realise that we've been influenced in our choices. This is what Derren Brown does. In a real life example, these are examples.


  • Believing the propaganda in the news, and failing to realise what newspapers support which political parties.
  • Being influenced by advertising to buy and do things they want you to do.
  • On a more personal level, a homeless man who says "I'm hungry and I don't have anything to eat. By saying "I'm hungry and I don't have anything to eat", it suggests that you can give him something to eat. By saying "I'm really homeless. I can show you where I sleep if you want." it suggests that the only way for that beggar to stop bothering you, is if you donate to it.


Libertarians follow less suggestion, as they know their shortcomings, and how they work and why they exist. This makes Libertarians weird.

What is being sheep?


Sheep is the term given to people in society, who are so imprinted by it, that they have lost the ability to think for themselves, and to be ambitious. Here's some examples.

  • People walk past a shop that is boarded up with a council poster on it, saying that they'll give away £20,000 grants for people to start up their own retail business in that residence. People who walk past it ignore it, and when they see it, they think nothing of it. Those same people watch tv, and do the Lottery or phone in competitions.
  • People who believed that the Large Hadron Collider would of sucked the Universe into a black hole when they were creating a mini big bang.
  • People who do things because everyone else is doing it, without thinking about it, and not because of peer pressure. Taking drugs is not an example of this, but people who don't think to walk on the road when the pavement is locked off from construction works is. Instead those people cross the road, walk forwards past the construction on the other side of the road, then cross the road.


Libertarians are not sheep, as they know their shortcomings, and how they work and why they exist. This makes Libertarians weird.

Why does this make Libertarians weird?

Due to the nature of Libertarians, which I've already explained to you; they are more free to act in more unique and quirky ways, without retribution from others in society. Because of this, they can be more unique, quirky, and possibly branch off into the experimental.

Strange, weird and different.
That's why you and your peers are different, whereas Libertarians are weird. Both groups can find each other strange, but that doesn't necessarily make you [the OP] weird.

In a sentence

The reason why Libertarians are so socially weird, is because they are less prone to suggestion, social pressures, and being sheep. This is because the nature of a Libertarian is to know your shortcomings, and how they work and why they exist.

I am good at finding patterns in people's behaviour, and I like to learn about society.
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What's an assertion, and what should I type in?

Compesh is a question and answer (and debate) website, so before you make a debate, you better learn what an assertion is. I suppose you already know what a question is, and that you've typed it in the box. ;)

An assertion, is basically a statement you can make, that is either true or false.

Richer people have better health.

The question for that would be, Do richer people have better health?

And don't forget to make your assertion, match your question.

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