![]() Since they have decided that this is the true state of affairs, they then demand the use of force in order to substitute their own inclinations for those of the human race. … According to these writers, it is indeed fortunate that Heaven has bestowed upon certain men - governors and legislators - the exact opposite inclinations, not only for their own sake but also for the sake of the rest of the world! While mankind tends toward evil, the legislators yearn for good while mankind advances toward darkness, the legislators aspire for enlightenment while mankind is drawn toward vice, the legislators are attracted toward virtue. Socialists look upon people as raw material to be formed into social combinations. ![]() Politicians’ sense of superiority drives them to implement socialism: These are the three basic requirements of life, and the preservation of any one of them is completely dependent upon the preservation of the other two.Ģ. …Įach of us has a natural right - from God - to defend his person, his liberty, and his property. On the contrary, it was the fact that life, liberty, and property existed beforehand that caused men to make laws in the first place. Life, liberty, and property do not exist because men have made laws. And in spite of the cunning of artful political leaders, these three gifts from God precede all human legislation, and are superior to it. Life, faculties, production - in other words, individuality, liberty, property - this is man. This process is necessary in order that life may run its appointed course. By the application of our faculties to these natural resources we convert them into products, and use them. And He has put us in the midst of a variety of natural resources. In order that we may accomplish this, He has provided us with a collection of marvelous faculties. ![]() The Creator of life has entrusted us with the responsibility of preserving, developing, and perfecting it. This gift is life - physical, intellectual, and moral life.īut life cannot maintain itself alone. We hold from God the gift which includes all others. Everyone has a God-given right to life, liberty, and property: In honor of his birthday, here are six quotations about life, liberty, property, the role of the state, and the compatibility of religion and liberty drawn from his best-known work, his 1850 pamphlet, The Law:ġ. Even Karl Marx begrudgingly acknowledged Bastiat as “the most adequate representative of the apologetic of vulgar economy.”īastiat was born in France on J(although some sources give June 29 as his birthday). For more than a century Bastiat’s concise, wisdom-infused words have led people on both sides of the Atlantic to embrace the timeless principles of limited government, freedom of commerce, and unalienable rights. The French writer, philosopher, and exponent of liberty Frédéric Bastiat would turn 219 years old this week.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |