Consequentialist Libertarianism
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Consequentialist libertarianism, also known as consequentialist liberalism or libertarian consequentialism, is a
libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...
political philosophy and position that is supportive of a
free market In economics, a free market is an economic market (economics), system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of ...
and strong private property rights only on the grounds that they bring about favorable consequences such as prosperity or efficiency.


Overview

What consequentialist libertarians advocate is derived through cost–benefit calculation, taking a broad account of consequences. It is contrasted with
deontological libertarianism Natural-rights libertarianism is the theory that all individuals possess certain natural or moral rights, mainly a right of individual sovereignty and that therefore acts of initiation of force and fraud are rights-violations and that is suffici ...
which considers the initiation of force and
fraud In law, fraud is intent (law), intentional deception to deprive a victim of a legal right or to gain from a victim unlawfully or unfairly. Fraud can violate Civil law (common law), civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrato ...
to be immoral, regardless of consequences. Unlike deontological libertarians, consequentialist libertarians do not necessarily see all cases of initiation of force as immoral and do not see it as inherently immoral (i.e., they do not express a belief in
natural rights Some philosophers distinguish two types of rights, natural rights and legal rights. * Natural rights are those that are not dependent on the laws or customs of any particular culture or government, and so are ''universal'', ''fundamental rights ...
). Rather, their position is that
political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...
and economic liberty lead to the best consequences in the form of happiness and prosperity and for that reason alone it should be supported. Some libertarians may have a conception of libertarianism that is a hybrid of
consequentialism In moral philosophy, consequentialism is a class of normative, teleological ethical theories that holds that the consequences of one's conduct are the ultimate basis for judgement about the rightness or wrongness of that conduct. Thus, from a ...
and
deontology In moral philosophy, deontological ethics or deontology (from Greek language, Greek: and ) is the normative ethics, normative ethical theory that the morality of an action should be based on whether that action itself is right or wrong under a ...
. Unlike deontological libertarians, consequentialist libertarians advocate actions they believe bring about favorable consequences regardless of whether these constitute initiation of force. For example, unlike deontological libertarians, some consequentialist libertarians support
eminent domain Eminent domain, also known as land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation, is the compulsory acquisition of private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and t ...
and involuntary taxes. Particular views vary among consequentialist libertarians, with political theorist
David D. Friedman David Director Friedman (; born February 12, 1945) is an American economist, physicist, legal scholar, and anarcho-capitalist theorist. Although his academic training was in chemistry and physics and not law or economics, he is known for his t ...
supporting a consequentialist form of
anarcho-capitalism Anarcho-capitalism (colloquially: ancap or an-cap) is a political philosophy and economic theory that advocates for the abolition of centralized states in favor of stateless societies, where systems of private property are enforced by pri ...
where the content of law is bought and sold rather than there being an established legal code forbidding initiation of force.


Notable consequentialist libertarians

*
Milton Friedman Milton Friedman (; July 31, 1912 – November 16, 2006) was an American economist and statistician who received the 1976 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his research on consumption analysis, monetary history and theory and ...
*
David D. Friedman David Director Friedman (; born February 12, 1945) is an American economist, physicist, legal scholar, and anarcho-capitalist theorist. Although his academic training was in chemistry and physics and not law or economics, he is known for his t ...
* Peter Leeson *
Ludwig von Mises Ludwig Heinrich Edler von Mises (; ; September 29, 1881 – October 10, 1973) was an Austrian-American political economist and philosopher of the Austrian school. Mises wrote and lectured extensively on the social contributions of classical l ...
Younkins, Edward W. (6 July 2002). ''Mises' Utilitarianism as Social Cooperation''. *
Friedrich Hayek Friedrich August von Hayek (8 May 1899 – 23 March 1992) was an Austrian-born British academic and philosopher. He is known for his contributions to political economy, political philosophy and intellectual history. Hayek shared the 1974 Nobe ...
* R. W. Bradford


See also

*
Chicago school of economics The Chicago school of economics is a Neoclassical economics, neoclassical Schools of economic thought, school of economic thought associated with the work of the faculty at the University of Chicago, some of whom have constructed and populari ...
*
Classical economics Classical economics, also known as the classical school of economics, or classical political economy, is a school of thought in political economy that flourished, primarily in Britain, in the late 18th and early-to-mid 19th century. It includ ...
*
Classical liberalism Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics and civil liberties under the rule of law, with special emphasis on individual autonomy, limited governmen ...
*
Debates within libertarianism Libertarianism is variously defined by sources as there is no general consensus among scholars on the definition nor on how one should use the term as a historical category. Scholars generally agree that libertarianism refers to the group of pol ...
*
Dispersed knowledge Dispersed knowledge in economics is the notion that no single agent has information as to all of the factors which influence prices and production throughout the system. The term has been both expanded upon and popularized by American economist ...
*
Free-market environmentalism Free-market environmentalism is a type of environmentalism that argues that the free market, property rights, and tort law provide the best means of preserving the environment, internalizing pollution costs, and conserving resources. Free-ma ...
*
Geolibertarianism Geolibertarianism is a political and economic ideology that integrates libertarianism with Georgism. It favors a taxation system based (as in Georgism) on income derived from land and natural resources instead of on labor, coupled with a minimali ...
*
Left-libertarianism Left-libertarianism, also known as left-wing libertarianism, is a political philosophy and type of libertarianism that stresses both individual freedom and social equality. Left-libertarianism represents several related yet distinct approaches to ...
* Natural rights libertarianism *
Night-watchman state A night-watchman state, also referred to as a minimal state or minarchy, whose proponents are known as minarchists, is a model of a state that is limited and minimal, whose functions depend on libertarian theory. Right-libertarians support i ...
*
Optimal tax Optimal tax theory or the theory of optimal taxation is the study of designing and implementing a tax that maximises a social welfare function subject to economic constraints. The social welfare function used is typically a function of individuals ...
* Outline of libertarianism *
Pragmatism Pragmatism is a philosophical tradition that views language and thought as tools for prediction, problem solving, and action, rather than describing, representing, or mirroring reality. Pragmatists contend that most philosophical topics†...
*
Public choice Public choice, or public choice theory, is "the use of economic tools to deal with traditional problems of political science."Gordon Tullock, 9872008, "public choice," ''The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics''. . It includes the study of po ...
*
Right-libertarianism Right-libertarianism,Rothbard, Murray (1 March 1971)"The Left and Right Within Libertarianism". ''WIN: Peace and Freedom Through Nonviolent Action''. 7 (4): 6–10. Retrieved 14 January 2020.Goodway, David (2006). '' Anarchist Seeds Beneath the ...
*
Subjective theory of value The subjective theory of value (STV) is an theory of value (economics), economic theory for explaining how the value of goods and services are not only set but also how they can fluctuate over time. The contrasting system is typically known as the ...
*
Utilitarianism In ethical philosophy, utilitarianism is a family of normative ethical theories that prescribe actions that maximize happiness and well-being for the affected individuals. In other words, utilitarian ideas encourage actions that lead to the ...


References

{{Libertarianism Consequentialism Libertarianism by form Libertarian theory