Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 8/23/84; site ucbcad.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!ucbvax!ucbcad!faustus From: faustus@ucbcad.UUCP Newsgroups: net.politics Subject: Re: a question Message-ID: <2738@ucbcad.UUCP> Date: Sat, 13-Oct-84 03:31:45 EDT Article-I.D.: ucbcad.2738 Posted: Sat Oct 13 03:31:45 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 16-Oct-84 07:36:02 EDT References: <655@oliven.UUCP> Organization: UC Berkeley CAD Group, Berkeley, CA Lines: 27 > [] > A QUESTION > > Is liberty (a) a scarce good or (b) a free good? > > To explain: A scarce good is that which exists only in > a limited degree and is subject to destruction by external > forces; enlightened constitutional government is one means of > preserving liberty, which would vanish in the chaos of anarchy. > > A free good is something that is always available to > everyone; therefore, government functions as a barrier between > us and it; if government were removed, liberty would result. > danw Ask yourself this: do animals in the wild have liberty? They don't have many rights (at least ones that are respected by other animals). Then ask yourself, what is the difference between us and wild animals? (The answer is, or course, that we have a government.) But seriously, first we should decide: what is liberty? Being able to do what we want? Being able to do what we want, as long as it is not preventing people from doing what they want? Being able to do most of the things we want, the price of this being not being able to do the rest of them? That goes a long way towards deciding whether government promotes or hinders liberty... Wayne