I have this one contention to make and prove in this essay: that the essence of all just authority stems from the common natures of mankind, and that the essence of all just liberty stems from the common differences of mankind. No political theorist will be at odds with me on this one point of my thesis: authority and liberty are diametrically opposed acts. Authority implies a limitation, a regulation, a restriction, an inhibition of the desires. Liberty implies no limitation, no relugation, ro restruction, no inhibition of the desires. But then there is the question of, “To Whom?” To whom is this liberty, and to whom is this authority? For a man to be allowed to steal property whenever he wishes will be a liberty to himself, but authority to the one whom is his target. For a man to be disallowed from a certain activity is an act of authority. When a man is allowed the right to freedom of speech, it is liberty to himself and an act of authority to the one who hears it. These are simple and confined cases of activity and the role of might or justice as it might appear. When we are judging an entire society, an act of authority is an inhibition on a certain action or activity that is enforced against all members of the commonwealth. Likewise, an act of liberty is this lack of authority, a lack of regulation, inhibition, or restriction — liberty is the right to commit a certain action without deterrence.
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There are several ways in which our political theorists,The Role of Authority and Liberty in a Just Democracy Articles old and modern, have examined the problems of society. It always seemed to be either in the view of a liberationist versus that of a slaver. Yet these words might be slanted to describe it accurately, and depending upon the ones examining the situation, the words will be switched. For example, when we speak of liberty, it is the whole of society allowing something. While liberty is highly thought of, few would agree that we ought to have the freedom to murder and pillage. Furthermore, when we think of restriction or inhibition or oppression, we think very low of it, yet there is a consensus that such restrictions and oppression should be applied in the case of murder and pillage. An individual might have a well thought out argument, but once they say “there should be limits to freedom,” it is assumed that they are Fascist oppressors. Allow me to draw another example of liberty and authority. During the formation of the United States as a nation, developing from the revolutionary fighters to statesmen and politicans, during this time, it became a battle of Federalists versus anti-Federalists. The argument of the Federalists was this: that as a united front, the same laws that apply in one state ought to apply in another state, or at least with some degree of authority. The Federalist argument was, essentially, an Authoritarian argument. The anti-Federalist argument was the underlying idea that one state can make its own laws that are different from any other state, and that no state (or states) can make laws on the territory of any other state. One might even decide to follow this argument to its logical conclusion and grant every town or large city its own laws without interference from the outside world’s political spectrum. The anti-Federalists were essentially Libertarians. When I apply these terms Authoritarian and Libertarian, it is not so much to make a value judgment or to take the side of one over the other. Rather, it is to help simplify the argument at hand; and, as I just said, authority is wholly agreed upon when it is enforcing the right to life and the right to protection from murder, etc., etc..
To better help illuminate the dilemma that society is presented with, it is best to take into consideration the different motives that each person has. In the case of the Federalist versus the anti-Federalist, there are two motives, both of which seem to stem from the same sense of liberty, independence, and security. For the anti-Federalist, there is the fear that the other states might create some arbitrary policy, some awkward and idiotic statute, that would infringe largely upon his own rights and his own freedoms, while it hurt the other states none at all. In the case of the southern states versus the northern states prior to the civil war, the great dilemma was over slavery. Southern states were afraid that a Federalist policy would allow the northern states to dictate the rule on their own land. The situation could be turned around entirely. A northern state, during the formation of the nation, could potentially fear the other states enforcing a law allowing slavery on their state in a Federalist decision. So, understandably, the motive behind the anti-Federalist was a Libertarian argument, with the essential good belief that the people of a single state or province are enough to make wise, sound, and just policy.
Now, let’s examine the motive behind the Federalist, the individual whose primary ideal is that the laws of a nation are uniform where necessary. What is the motive for this Federalist? It is for the idea that there should be one basic, essential, humane code that reigns throughout every state. That the basic rights to which mankind should be endowed are the same in one state as any other state, and that nobody should ever have to avoid certain states because a certain right of theirs might be too important. For example, a Federalist might believe that the right to religion is the most important right of all. To him, the praise and worship of the lord has taken so many forms and has filled so many lives with contentness, that it should be respected no matter where the religious nomads decide to travel. Even if in a state that is inhabited by intolerant neanderthals, every citizen in this nation should have their right to religion protected. The anti-Federalist is afraid that the collective of states will ignore their rights, while the Federalist is afraid that a single state will ignore their rights or the rights of others who are equally deserving. Essentially, their desires are the same: to create a just society, where the rights of all are respected. The way of going about it is where their argument springs up.