What Conservatives Believe: Life, Liberty, & that Other Thing – Part IV

“Conservatives are persuaded that freedom and property are closely linked.”  Russell Kirk – Ten Conservative Principles*

In Part I of this series we discussed capitalism as the ideal protector of an individual’s natural right to the pursuit of property.  We also touched on the competing economic system of socialism.  In Part II we discussed the allure socialism has over Millennials in particular.  In Part III we discussed the difference between the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of property, and the idea that people have a right to something as nebulous as free healthcare.  If you’re reading this series for the first time be sure and check out Part I, Part II, and Part III.

Some Objections to Private Property

Legions, volumes, mountains of books have been painstakingly written both extolling and condemning capitalism and the possession of private property.  I am under no delusion that this tiny post is up to the task of settling the matter once and for all.  Nevertheless, in this final post I’d like to offer some rebuttals to some common objections to capitalism.

What Conservatives Believe: Life, Liberty, & that Other Thing – Part III

“Conservatives are persuaded that freedom and property are closely linked.”  Russell Kirk – Ten Conservative Principles*

In Part I of this series we discussed capitalism as the ideal protector of an individual’s natural right to the pursuit of property.  We also touched on the competing economic system of socialism.  In Part II we discussed the allure socialism has over Millennials in particular.  If you’re reading this series for the first time be sure and check out Part I and Part II.

Positive and Negative Rights

In part II, I quoted Bernie Sanders expressing his belief that everybody in this country should be entitled to health care as a right.  Former president Obama took this a step further in insisting Americans had a right to health insurance.  If this is the case—if healthcare and health insurance are aright—then a certain level of governmental intervention would be acceptable and necessary to provide for this right.  But is healthcare or health insurance a right in the same sense as the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of property conservatives uphold?