Human beings are self-actualizing social animals. We need to cooperate with others to flourish fully and (but?) we also need the freedom to make of ourselves the persons we wish to be; we need autonomy. Can we do both liberty and social order? The answer is yes, and...
Libertarianism
Richard Cobden on the Link between Free Trade and Peace
by Sheldon Richman | Jul 12, 2022 | Blog, Economics, Foreign Policy, Justice, Libertarianism, Politics
I see in the Free-trade principle that which shall act on the moral world as the principle of gravitation in the universe,—drawing men together, thrusting aside the antagonism of race, and creed, and language, and uniting us in the bonds of eternal peace. I have...
TGIF: Why Can’t You Shout “Fire!” in the Virtual Public Square?
by Sheldon Richman | Jul 8, 2022 | Economics, Featured Articles, Justice, Libertarianism, Politics, Sheldon Richman, TGIF
Almost 10 years ago the free-speech champion Trevor Timm, with the Electronic Frontier Foundation at the time and now with the Free of the Press Foundation, implored readers "to stop using the ‘fire in a crowded theater’ quote" to justify limits on free expression....
How Could Anyone Be an Anarchist?
by Keith Knight | Jul 6, 2022 | Featured Articles, Libertarianism
The following excerpts are from the Keith Knight - Don’t Tread on Anyone podcast ***** Keith Knight: A lot of criticism of the free market is not unique to the free market. For example, there is greed, there is dog-eat-dog competition, it can disrupt & disorder,...
Privacy and the Constitution
by Sheldon Richman | Jun 27, 2022 | Blog, Justice, Libertarianism
"[B]oth the [']liberals['] and the conservatives misunderstand privacy. The conservatives engage in a narrow and unnatural reading of the Constitution in order to avoid seeing what they do not wish to see, while the [']liberals['] find in the Constitution not...
TGIF: Parents Should Govern Their Kids’ Education
by Sheldon Richman | Jun 24, 2022 | Featured Articles, Justice, Libertarianism, Politics, Sheldon Richman, TGIF
How clear are these opening words of the First Amendment: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof”? Judging by the U.S. Supreme Court's many ventures into this area, we'd have to say not very clear...
TGIF: Free Exchange Is Win-Win
by Sheldon Richman | Jun 17, 2022 | Economics, Featured Articles, Justice, Libertarianism, Politics, Sheldon Richman, TGIF
With the possible exception of the political class and its cronies, most of us would be healthier, wealthier, happier, and freer if the public knew how to engage in "the economic way of thinking." The late Paul Heyne, who wrote a popular textbook by that name (now in...
TGIF: The Libertarian Solution
by Sheldon Richman | Jun 10, 2022 | Economics, Featured Articles, Justice, Libertarianism, Politics, Sheldon Richman, TGIF
"What's the libertarian solution to social or economic problem X? How about problem Y or Z?" No libertarian needs to wait long before hearing such questions. But strictly speaking, the libertarian philosophy offers no solutions to specific problems. That's not what it...