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Some Thoughts 011 on Liberalism*

The first principle of liberalis111 liberalism is that human beings are and ought out to be free; that they all have a right to freedom; and that the proper business of governlnent government is to secure their right and to promote their freedom.

The first principle of de1110cratic democratic liberalism is that hUIuan human beings are and ought out to be equally free; that they all have a right to equal freedom; and that the proper business of goverrlluent government is to secure their right and to prOluote promote their equal freedom.

The history of liberalism, including deIuocratic liberalisIudemocratic liberalism, has been detenuineddetermined, above all, by two fundaluental fundamental changes:

understanding of

political freedo111 and a share in goverrlluent (1) an expanding understanding of the right to freedom--from including solely the right to political freedom and share in government to including the right to all basic requireluents requirements of human security and development necessary to personal dignity and equal opportunity; and (2) an expanding understanding of the scope of democracy-frolu-from including only white, propertied, and male adults as citizens to including all adults as citizens regardless of race, property, and . gender.

The deIuocratic democratic liberal principle principles of equal freedolufreedom, and so also equal respect, requires a systelu system of rights, which protect the But, then, a necessary condition of there being fundaluental (huluan, or inalienable) rights is that there be a distinction between what the govcnlluent (In a deIuocracy, the Iuajority) believes to be so and what really is so. Consequently, a necessary condition for citizens to(1) an expanding the right to freedom-from including solely the right to the including only white, propertied, and male adults citizens~ freedolu to citizens' freedom to pursue their own lives as much as possible as they themselves see fit. Such rights can be fundaluental fundamental or nonfundaluentalnonfundamental, Iuatters matters of principle or Inatters matters of policy. A fundamental right that is a matter of principle (also called a "hulllan human right/' ," or an "inalienable" right) is justified either because it is necessary out of the basic respect due to any human being or because it is constitutive of any political systelu system that accords such basic respect. A nonfundalllental nonfundamental right, on the other hand, is a matter of policy and is justified as a l1lCanS means to a worthwhile social goal.

But, then, a necessary condition of their being fundamental (human, or inalienable) rights is that there be a distinction between what the government (in a democracy, the majority) believes to be so and what really is so. Consequently, a necessary condition for citizens to believe that they have 2fundanl.ental fundamental rights is that they also believe that there is a difference between vvhat what the luajority majority believes and what is really the case.

On the other hand, believing in any particular theory of fundamental rights, such as the theory of the American founders that there are inalienable rights because there are rights that are natural and God-given, is ("-After studying Paul Starr, not a necessary condition of believing that one has fundanl.ental fundamental rights. All that is necessary in order to believe that is to believe that the proposition, "Every person has fundaluental fundamental rights that she or he cannot lose," is aluong among the propositions that are somehow objectively true, whatever anyone mayor 111.ay may or may not believe, including whatever any governluent government or majority mayor Ill.ay may or may not believe.

(*After studying Paul Starr, Freedom's Power, and Michael Lynch, True to Life)

21 Noveluber November 2007