UPDATED, 01/25/06
Some relevant reading:
Natural Rights: Useful Fiction, by John Henke at QandO NEW
Government: The Social Contract Market, by Jon Henke at QandO
Rights Schmights, by Max Borders at TCS Daily
The Right in My Garage, by Jon Henke at QandO
The Paradox of Libertarianism, A Footnote to My Theory of Rights, and The Origin and Essence of Rights, by moi
skip to main |
skip to sidebar
My New Blog
Timeless Posts
On Liberty
John Stuart Mill opined that "the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others." But who determines whether an act is harmful or harmless? Acts deemed harmless by an individual are not harmless if they subvert the societal bonds of trust and self-restraint upon which liberty itself depends. Which is not to say that all social regimes are regimes of liberty. Liberty requires voice -- the freedom to dissent -- and exit -- the freedom to choose one's neighbors and associates. Voice and exit depend, in turn, on the rule of law under a minimal central government, such as the one envisioned by the Framers of our Constitution. Liberty, because it is a social phenomenon and not an innate condition of humanity, must be won and preserved by staunchly and unflinchingly defending the nation and through the swift and certain administration of justice.
Blog Archive
-
►
2008
(186)
- ► April 2008 (35)
- ► March 2008 (39)
- ► February 2008 (34)
- ► January 2008 (41)
-
►
2007
(241)
- ► December 2007 (39)
- ► November 2007 (31)
- ► October 2007 (56)
- ► September 2007 (43)
- ► August 2007 (39)
- ► April 2007 (1)
- ► March 2007 (1)
- ► February 2007 (1)
- ► January 2007 (5)
-
▼
2006
(420)
- ► November 2006 (11)
- ► October 2006 (25)
- ► September 2006 (33)
- ► August 2006 (41)
- ► April 2006 (40)
- ► March 2006 (53)
- ► February 2006 (51)
-
▼
January 2006
(51)
- (Final?) Words about Preemption and the Constitution
- Pseudo-Science in the Service of Political Correct...
- The Fatal Naïveté of Anarcho-Libertarianism
- Democracy vs. Liberty, Again
- Economist, Heal Thyself
- Economic Sanity
- Wal-Mart and Jobs
- Joel Stein's "Logic"
- More Foxhole Rats
- O(kay) Canada!
- Clear Thinking about the Death Penalty
- More "McCarthyism"
- "Natural Rights" and Libertarianism
- Lest We Forget
- Back-Door Paternalism
- A Quick Thought for a Friday Afternoon
- Ecoutez!
- Obtuse Nonsense
- Too Many Shots
- Brian Leiter, Exposed
- More Punishment Means Less Crime: A Footnote
- A Supreme Court Quiz
- Celebrating My Heritage
- Debunking "Scientific Objectivity"
- Mister Hockey
- Life's Lessons
- Words for the Unwise
- Economics: The "Democrat" Science
- Tidbits
- Worth Repeating
- More from Fringe Watch
- Privacy: Variations on the Theme of Liberty
- A Dissonant Vision
- More Innumeracy and Illogic from the Left
- Well Said
- John Sharpe's Legion of St. Louis
- Risk and Regulation
- Privacy, Security, and Electronic Surveillance
- Is "Nothing" Possible?
- More about Crime and Punishment
- A New Whine from Prof. Bainbridge
- Lew-nacy
- Crime and Punishment
- The Paradox of Libertarianism
- East Meets West
- Thought for the Day
- The Real Con Job
- Authoritarianism and Adolescence on the Left
- More Punishment Means Less Crime
- January 3, 2006 . . .
- Capitalism, Liberty, and Christianity
-
►
2005
(439)
- ► December 2005 (48)
- ► November 2005 (54)
- ► October 2005 (26)
- ► September 2005 (41)
- ► August 2005 (30)
- ► April 2005 (34)
- ► March 2005 (50)
- ► February 2005 (32)
- ► January 2005 (18)
-
►
2004
(743)
- ► December 2004 (21)
- ► November 2004 (73)
- ► October 2004 (128)
- ► September 2004 (176)
- ► August 2004 (144)
- ► April 2004 (28)
- ► March 2004 (37)
Categories
- Academic Freedom - Civil Liberties - Privacy (144)
- Affirmative Action - Immigration - Race (94)
- Art and Architecture (3)
- Baseball and Lesser Sports (52)
- Blogs - Bloggers - Blogging (61)
- Climate Change and Environmentalism (53)
- Conservatism and True Libertarianism (66)
- Conshttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.giftitution - Courts - Law - Justice (1)
- Constitution - Courts - Law - Justice (291)
- Economics: Principles and Issues (316)
- Enemies: Foreign and Domestic (116)
- Health and Health Care (20)
- History (70)
- Humor - Satire - Wry Commentary (63)
- Intelligence - Personality - Psychology (99)
- Language - Literature - Movies - Music (93)
- Leftism - Statism - Democracy (416)
- Liberty - Libertarianism - Rights (305)
- Management (24)
- Media Matters (73)
- Nature (4)
- Nostalgia - Trivia - Popular Culture (66)
- Philosophy - Religion - Science - Pseudoscience (134)
- Politics - Politicians - Government in Action (320)
- Public Education and Homeschooling (15)
- Self Ownership: Abortion - Euthanasia - Gender - Etc. (71)
- Self Ownhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifership: Abortion - Euthanasia - Gender - Etc. (1)
- Thinkers: Famous and Infamous (163)
- War - Peace - Foreign Affairs (291)