Rule by the freest

Barney Frank is someone I don’t respect, and not merely because of his role in deconstructing the banking system while denying any responsibility.
This unaccountable man’s logic is terrible, and what he said here reminds me of the social conservatives he so loudly condemns.

“I would let people gamble on the Internet,” Frank said. “I would let adults smoke marijuana; I would let adults do a lot of things, if they choose.”
He added: “But allowing them total freedom to take on economic obligations that spill over into the broader society? The individual is not the only one impacted here, when bad decisions get made in the economic sphere, it causes problems.”

(Via Glenn Reynolds.)
And there’s more:

CNSNews.com asked Frank … whether Frank’s proposal might undercut personal responsibility and the freedom of individuals to make decisions.
“We’re not just talking individual responsibility,” Rep. Frank answered. “We have a world-wide economic crisis now, because of this. If it were purely individual responsibility, OK, that’s why I disagree with the ranking member.”

As Nick Gillespie points out, “that, of course, is an argument constantly thrown against drug-taking and gambling (what about the children of addicts, etc.).” It’s communitarianism on steroids, and there is no way to logically reconcile Frank’s antipathy to economic freedom with his broad support (at least so he says) for sexual and chemical freedom. Not that this would matter to Frank. The man is a highly partisan activist.
Still, I’ve always been puzzled by how antipathy to economic freedom (the right to do what you want with your money) is called economic liberalism, while antipathy to the right to do what you want with your body is called social conservatism. Not that my puzzlement would matter to an activist, because they are free from the burden of having to explain themselves, and even free from the burden of logic. On top of that, they are always right! (Just ask them!) Perhaps they are some of the freest people in the world.
Might that be related to why they so often get to rule the rest of us?