Social Science 30

February 3, 2011
(John Hospers)

“every person is the owner of his own life, and

that no one is the owner of anyone else’s ;
life: and consequently every human being
has the right to act in accordance with his
own choices, unless those actions infringe on
the equal liberty of other human beings to
act in accordance with their choices.”
1. No one is anyone else’s master, and no one
is anyone else’s slave

-no one has the right to use FORCE to

enslave another person.

- and individual is the master of his/ her

own life and should be free from the
infringement of others
2. Other men’s lives are not yours to dispose
of.

“Do you want to operas so badly that everyone

is forced to work harder to pay for their
subsidization through taxes?”

“But other men’s lives are not yours to dispose

of.”
Poses a critique to WELFARISM.
- person should the one responsible for his or
her own needs

Should men be compelled to pay taxes in order

to pay for the needs of other?

According to libertarianism, THEY SHOULD NOT

BE.
-compelling or FORCING others to “pay” for
your needs is, in essence, enslaving them

-ex. subsidy, welfare, etc.

3. No human being should be a non voluntary
mortgage on the life of another.

“I cannot claim you life, your work, or the

products of your effort as mine. The fruit of
man’s labor should not be fair game for
every freeloader who comes along and
demands it as his own.”
The wealth of human beings should be his/ her
own and not to be “up for grabs” to any
passerby.

“Passerby” includes the government. Private

property should not be taken or used for any
purpose.
“The theft of your money by a robber is not
justified by the fact that he used it to help
his injured mother.”

Generally:
“Each human being has the right to live his life
as he chooses, comparatibly with the equal
right of all other human beings to live their
lives as they choose.”
Not confined with real estate.

Anything you own is your property which may

include your clothing, car, jewelry, etc.
All (wo)men have a right to life, liberty and
PROPERTY.

Property rights is essential to living for no

other right is possible without property
rights.

“Depriving you of property is depriving you of

the means by which you live.”
Property rights is essential to living because:
(1) it serves as a protection for the future.

Right to property ensures that the fruits of

your hard work will still be yours in the
future in case you need it and you are not
anymore able to do hard work.

It also makes long range planning possible.

“Without the right to property, the right to life
itself amounts to little: how can you sustain
your life if you cannot plan ahead? And how
can you plan ahead if the fruits of your labor
can at any moment be confiscated by the
government?”
(2) Protection against the aggressive activities
of other men.

“I have no right to decide how you should

spend your time and money.”
Why not have a communal property?

1. Encouragesfreeloading on the efforts of

others. That is not JUST.

2. No one is accountable thus resulting to the

loss/ destruction of property.
Libertarianism puts emphasis on the abilities of
human beings to fend for themselves and
their individual abilities to obtain PRIVATE
INDIVIDUAL property.

Thus posing a critique to the “injustice” of

WELFARISM.

Welfare should not be the task of the

government.
Government should only be concerned with
RETRIBUTION.

Punishing with the use of force to those who

inflicted it to others first.

Protection of the citizens from aggressors,

eliminate the constant fear of death. Beyond
that, the government should not intrude.
Primary task of governments: PROTECTION OF
HUMAN RIGHTS
- Protection for life, liberty and property.

Beyond that, the state should have very

minimal intervention thus welfare is not the
task of the government.
3 types of laws:
1. Laws protecting individuals against
themselves

2. Laws protecting individuals against others

3. Laws
requiring people to help one another
(welfare)
Libertarianism rejects the 1st and 2nd types of
laws and pushes that laws should only be in
the 2nd type.

Behavior which harms no one else is strictly

the individual’s own affair.

Also, laws in the third type infringes on their

property rights.
The governments should not be compelling
people to “pay” for the lack of others at the
expense of those who can provide.

This is not part of the RIGHTS of individuals.

They are masters of their own lives,
therefore, they should be the ones
responsible for their means of living.
 Welfarism breeds MORAL CANNIBALISM.

Feeding on the spirit and property of others.

“At whose expense? Jobs, medical care,
education, and so on, don’t grow on trees.
These are goods and services produced only
by men. Who then is to provide them, and
under what conditions?”

“To expect something ‘for free’ is to expect it

to be paid for by others whether they choose
to or not.”
 Welfare is a form of “injustice” because it
means ENSLAVING, therefore, infringing on
the rights those who have the means in order
to provide for the lack of others.
Is a state without welfare a state which lets its
people go hungry?
Not necessarily. Together with the protection
of life, liberty and property, libertarianism
upholds that the market should be free from
state intervention.

A free market would result into a market with

more opportunities because of COMPETITION.