Winger Eugene Volokh of the ersatz libertarian leaning Volokh Conspiracy gleefully passes on notice this morning that a lawsuit against Avis for discriminating against a straight customer can proceed.   The gist of it is that because Avis gave a discount to the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association and the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce they were discriminating against heterosexuals by charging them more in violation of California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act.   If you thought that libertarians were opposed to such laws to begin with you’d be right.   If you thought that most people who oppose such laws are libertarians you would be sadly mistaken.   And especially when they claim to be libertarians.

Pay attention:

Another thread of argument runs through AVIS’s briefs: … since Plaintiff could have become a member of the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association or the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce and thus qualified for its favored discounts …, there was no pricing discrimination…. [But this] assumes an evidentiary showing which has yet to be made…. [A]lthough AVIS repeats it often as fact, there is no evidence that membership in either International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association or the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce was open to Plaintiff when she rented her car….

Okay…but where was the evidence that membership in either organization was not open to this Plaintiff?   There isn’t any.   And even if it was, that still doesn’t make a case that Avis itself is discriminating against heterosexuals.   Perhaps they give a membership discounts to the International Heterosexuals Butthurt Because Gay Bars Can’t Be Raided And Their Customers Thrown In Jail Anymore Association as well.   Surely Plaintiff could have found solidarity there.

But never mind that.   Didn’t I hear somewhere that libertarians don’t like anti-discrimination laws to begin with?     Hahahahahaha….

Volokh commenter 1: “Is it me, or is this a case where the discrimination laws are shown to be working across the board, that is against gay discrimination against straights as well, and yet the two most ‘voted up’ posts here are of the ‘gays get special rights under this law’ variety. What in the world?”

Volokh commenter 2: “It’s not you. It’s principled libertarians exercising outrage and protesting about a private company’s business decisions, as they always tell us disadvantaged minorities (like straight white people) should do.”

Except of course, this is not a case about discrimination and that first commenter needs to look, really look, at why it’s getting applause from the gays get special rights pew.   Special rights are when that smaller kid you enjoyed beating up gets a protector and now you’re having to answer for your abusive behavior and being a bully isn’t fun anymore.

A libertarian would tell the person filing this lawsuit to go to hell, Avis can do as it damn well pleases.   Eugene Volokh and his peanut gallery enjoy the spectacle of laws intended to protect a despised minority being used against them.   How dare they think they were entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?