Sons of Liberty

In On Liberty, Mill (1859, p. 60-61) offers four reasons as to why freedom of speech is essential; to deny the opinion of another is to assume that our views are never erroneous; sometimes an opinion may only be somewhat true, therefore free discussion is required…

John Locke proposes a view of freewill best characterized as compatiblism. The view he presents focuses heavily on the necessity of both liberty and motivation in true freedom. Ultimately, this view resembles libertarianism, but differs by elaborating on why people choose one decision over another. In traditional libertarianism individuals are free agents that make their own choices. As long as an individual’s ability to make choices is not restricted he is considered free. Locke disagrees…

Liberty What exactly does liberty mean? Well, to me it can mean a number of things. First of all, it can mean acting in whatever way you see fit for satisfying your own interests, desires and expectations to the extent that you don’t infringe upon the very same liberties of the others. Secondly, liberty means independence and freedom from physical restraint or external force, and our basic rights that the government cannot take away or interfere with. It is also a concept that protects all…

In defense of his harm principle, Mill delineates between harm to one’s self and harm to society; harm to one’s self cannot be legitimately condemned and is simply an inconvenience that society can handle for the sake of the greater good, while harm to society includes all actions that violate a specific duty to the public and intentionally inflict damage on others. Mill’s harm principle establishes a sphere in which social control should not be exercised. This sphere encompasses an individual’s…

John Locke was a political philosopher and social psychologist, often called the “Father of Liberalism”. He believed the right to government depended upon the people. He also claimed the natural right of man were the right to life, liberty, and property. Locke believed in religious freedom as well. He believed in an idea called “state of nature”. “State of nature” means all men are allowed to “order their actions, and dispose of their possessions and persons, as they think fit, within the bounds…

I am not convinced that Locke really thinks that the legislature is the supreme power. I believe that Locke thinks the executive is the supreme power. Locke begins off in chapter 14 by perceiving that, in any thoughtful society, circumstances will emerge that must be managed before the administrative can be amassed to give laws to them. In these cases, the executive may practice official right, or essentially "good judgment." The official is qualified to take activities that are outside the…

Classical Liberalism is based on the belief of liberty, whether giving slaves their rights as a person or giving women the same rights as men have. It actually is defined as valuing individuals freedom, such as their first amendment freedom of speech, press, religion, and assembly. The 1800’s were when classical liberalism started to make things happen, but in the 1900’s were pretty much when they useless because of The Great Depression and The World Wars. Apparently, it was also the founding…

of what can be considered damaging images, speech or actions. For example, I can choose to either live a life of good contribution to the country or no contribution in terms of productivity, development and research. Thus concludes my question if liberty, freedom and democracy improve whether or not somebody does or does not contribute. Mill argues that the people should be free and have the choice to do what they want without being told what to do. He writes, "government... will often…

The western world has many freedoms in comparison to other nations around the world, especially in terms of political liberty; there are, however, many aspects of the political climate that remain turbulent. One of these aspects, the freedom of speech, is powerfully addressed in philosopher John Stuart Mill's novel, On Liberty. Mill argues that, “[i]f all mankind minus one were of one opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person than he, if he had the power, would be…

In my opinion, I also believe that the political value held in the highest regard by the Framers of the Constitution were an individual’s natural, unalienable rights such as their life, liberty and property like Kimberly had stated in her discussion above. John Locke was well educated and played a key role in the revolution by providing Jefferson with information regarding contract law, which was the fuel Jefferson needed to get the crowds going to start the American Revolution. I do believe…