30-Second Politics

Critics of libertarians argue that positive freedom – the capacity to fulfil one’s full potential – requires government programmes including public education, universal health care and protection from environmental degradation

hough no two libertarians think exactly alike – that’s part of the beauty of libertarianism – virtually all libertarians believe that government should be strictly restricted to preventing, and punishing, citizens from harming one another in their liberty, their property and their lives. In short, government’s purpose is to protect people’s rights. Modern-day libertarianism has a strong free market-economic component, as libertarians believe that society flourishes when individuals following their own self-interest are allowed to enter into contracts with other free individuals.

The good news is that people are born free and equal, and owners of their own lives. The bad news is that people’s liberty and equality – indeed their overall wellbeing – is forever threatened

Liberals also began to emphasize the interconnectedness of society, noting how harm can result to individuals when economic systems such as capitalism lead to massive inequality, poverty and squalor, and dangerous work conditions.

Liberals began to promote the idea of positive liberty, which through a variety of programmes such as public education, aims at equipping citizens with the skills to increase their opportunities for meaningful life choices.

In the 20th century, however, liberals began to note that meaningful liberty cannot be separated from security or equal access to government.

Liberalism is the political doctrine of individual liberation, security from harm and equal rights

What is conservatism? Is it not adherence to the old and tried, against the new and untried?’
ABRAHAM LINCOLN

Today’s progressive liberals or reformers can become tomorrow’s conservative heroes if their innovations prove beneficial

Conservatives sometimes celebrate the efforts of past reformers – once those reformers have left the political arena to ride off into the sunset.