Libertarian Philosophy in the Real World: The Politics of Natural Rights
(Now Available)
Nozick’s Libertarian Project: An Elaboration and Defense
The Best of Modern Swedish Art Glass: Orrefors and Kosta 1930-1970
Tag Archives: libertarianism
Free Speech: Again, Misunderstood and Underappreciated
As some of you know by now, I have taken time away from my libertarian-minded commentary to focus on my Jewish theology blog. Nevertheless, when I encounter an influential public figure such as Josh Hammer writing something that impugns the absolute (apart from unrealistic philosophical thought experiments) value I assign to free expression, the temptation to reply becomes too powerful to resist. As I (following Nozick) argue in chapter three of my Libertarian Philosophy in the Real World, the paramount value of human life rests on our “rational agency;” that is, the Kantian notion of persons as responsible moral agents. Continue Reading »
Calling Ayn Rand!
As evidenced by the recent election of avowed socialists as mayors of NYC and Seattle, the cumulative failures of our education system and the mass media’s and academia’s intense hatred of free markets seem to have reignited an infatuation with socialism. Accordingly, this may be an appropriate moment to repost my essay regarding Ayn Rand, presented here some eleven years ago. As stated there, while I do not believe her Objectivism to be a cogent moral philosophy, I certainly admire her for being one of the first intellectuals to warn the West regarding the horrors of communism.
Moreover, I praised her for being an acute observer of human psychology, and diagnosing the motivations underlying humanity’s attraction to collectivism. To quote from my essay:
Nevertheless, Atlas Shrugged is a compelling read, and I believe that the key to its enduring success is Rand’s keen understanding of human psychology as expressed in the political realm. I believe that the key to the novel’s appeal is the author’s skill in graphically depicting how a society can implode when it fails to internalize the “meta-legal doctrine” that Hayek refers to as the rule of law. See The Constitution of Liberty, chapter 10. In a nutshell, Hayek’s political ideal requires the state to maintain strict neutrality between different groups of citizens, acting only to establish and enforce the “rules of the road” that all members of the community can use to guide them in pursuing their individual projects.
When, instead, citizens view the state not as a neutral referee but as a vehicle for redistributing wealth, they can be blinded by the authorities regarding the extent to which government’s own policies have impoverished them, both materially and morally. They will develop habits of mind that incline them to see the successful entrepreneur not as a precious asset, responsible for enriching society and creating opportunities for others, but as a source of plunder to be taken for the “greater good.” As illustrated in Atlas, this envy will in turn lead to governmental interventions that discourage entrepreneurship, and when taken to the extreme, kill it.
With our younger voters so afflicted, I fear dangerous times ahead.
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Tagged atlas shrugged, ayn rand, collectivism, communism, libertarianism, Mamdani, objectivism, socialism
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Freedom Implies Responsibility, College Edition
Senator Elizabeth Warren, a top-tier Democratic presidential candidate, is out with a proposal that would forgive most of the $1.5 trillion in higher-education student debt now outstanding. She and a number of other presidential hopefuls are also proposing “free” or heavily subsidized tuition at public colleges and universities.
These plans are, of course, anathema to libertarians because they impermissibly use the coercive power of the state to benefit some individuals at the expense of others. In this case, tax dollars are taken from those who elect not to pursue college degrees in order to first make, then forgive, student loans for those who do. And now, if these candidates get their way, to pay this tuition outright. Eighteen-year-olds are sufficiently mature to decide for themselves, without interference by the state, whether or not to pursue higher education, and to live with the consequences.
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Tagged higher education, libertarianism, natural rights, student loans, subsidies
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