- Feb 2025
-
pm.nlx.com.eu1.proxy.openathens.net pm.nlx.com.eu1.proxy.openathens.net
-
They may grudgingly concede the need of special measures of protection and alleviation undertaken by the state at times of great social stress, but they are the confirmed enemies of social legislation (even prohibition of child labor), as standing measures of political policy.
There is a disconnect happening here which is getting in the way of meaningful long lasting change. liberals accept government action only in extreme crisis which suggests that they acknowledge its necessity but refuse to institutionalize it even though its needed for lasting improvements.
-
He asserted that existing institutions were merely provisional, and that the "laws" governing the distribution of wealth are not°so-cial social but of man's contrivance and are man's to change.
this highlights the importance of human choice and reforms to help improve society
-
Great Britain, largely under Benthamite influence, built up an ordered civil service independent of°politi-cal political party control
but what if civil servants prioritize institutional rules/order over responsiveness to public needs
-
Men do not obey laws because they think these laws are in accord with a scheme of natural rights. They obey because they believe, rightly or wrongly, that the consequences of obeying are upon the whole better than the consequences of disobeying.
this is reminiscent of the traditional conservative belief that humans have a deep propensity for evil
-
The work of Bentham, in spite of fundamental defects in his underlying theory of human nature, is a demonstration that liberalism is not compelled by anything in its own nature to be impotent save for minor reforms. Bentham's influence is proof that liberalism can be a power in bringing about radical social changes:—provided it combine capacity for bold and°compre-hensive comprehensive social invention with detailed study of particulars and with courage in action.
this shows how liberalism is effective if it can balance its big bold ideas with practical and pragmatic execution. the two must coexist for the best result.
-
Every°re-striction restriction upon liberty is ipso facto a source of pain and a°limita-tion limitation of a pleasure that might otherwise be enjoyed. Hence the effect was the same in the two doctrines as far as the rightful province of governmental action is concerned
government should minimize unnecessary restrictions on people and only intervene when it could reduce suffering or increase happiness
-
The concern for liberty and for the°individ-ual, individual, which was the basis of Lockeian liberalism, persisted;°other-wise otherwise the newer theory would not have been liberalism. But°lib-erty liberty was given a very different practical meaning. In the end, the effect was to subordinate political to economic activity; to°con-nect connect natural laws with the laws of production and exchange, and to give a radically new significance to the earlier conception of reason.
The shift from a political to an economic focus suggests that the primary route for individual freedom was no longer political participation or governance, but instead economic activity. This creates the idea that your worth is directly related to your productivity/wealth.
-
Later liberalism inherited this conception of a natural antagonism°be-tween between ruler and ruled, interpreted as a natural opposition°be-tween between the individual and organized society.
this feels like it has marxist undertones which could be why it scares some people
-
Since governments are instituted to°pro-tect protect the natural rights of individuals, they lose claim to obedience when they invade and destroy these rights instead of°safeguard-ing safeguarding them: a doctrine that well served the aims of our forefathers in their revolt against British rule, and that also found an°ex-tended extended application in the French Revolution of 178
interesting how we went from this to now any criticism of the government being seen as anti-american even though a founding idea was that we the people give the power to the government
-
It was not a long time ago that°liber-alism liberalism was a term of praise; to be liberal was to be progressive, forward-looking, free from prejudice, characterized by all°admi-rable admirable qualities.
this carries the sentiment of Obama era liberalism vs now its seen as liberal tears or snow flake liberals. There def has been a major shift.
-
Again, a liberal is defined as "one who professes radical opinions in private but who never acts upon them for fear of losing entrée into the courts of the mighty and respectable."
This reminds me of the liberal discourse commonly found in Gen Z and millennial spaces, where some argue that being an "infographic warrior" isn’t real activism. The criticism is that simply posting from your phone isn’t enough—you need to be present in your community and actively organize to create meaningful change
-