Liberalism basic outline

Liberalism basic outline

1. Focus on the individual

   • Individual is the most important
   • Human rights and liberties limit the state
   • Human nature
     • People are rational
     • Can make own decisions
     • can think about things and base disisions on this
     • can consider morals
   • best judge of what is best for self
   • All people are different
     • Making own choices strenthen ability to reason
     • have different needs, wans and disires
     • Individual freedoms
       • JSM - educations and engagement in politics increases mans abilty to rational desisions
   • Minimal state as a result
     • week government
   • issues
     • Not all people are rational
     • Sometimes people do not understand their needs
     • What about self harm- would government have a case to stop it
     • Would a week government have enough power to meet its obligations

2. Social contract and concent

   • Government should be based on the consent of the people
   • Socail contract between the people and the state
   • State protects the rights of people
   • State acts as a judge between individuals during conflict to stop Violence
   • Issues
     • No-one actually enters into a contract
     • No option to opt out of this contract
     • does state have power to stop violence
     • What is harm? differs between people
   • Harm principle

3. Constitutionalism and the Rule of Law

   • Government should be limited
     • by a sepiration of powers
       • legislature
       • executive
       • judiciary
     • By the constituation
   • two different forms of law
     • The constituntion
       • A higher form of law that stops the government harming the people
     • The Law
       • Stops people harming each other
   • Issues
     • Seperating powers can lead to red tape and cause issues
     • What is harm? everyone has different version
     • Corruption

4. Freedom as Choice

   • Freedom allows rational individuals to pursue their intersts
   • linked with material choice
   • J.S Mills and others also introduced humanitarian elements
     • Freedom of speech
     • Freedom of religion
     • freedom of though
   • Issues
     • Freedom of speech can lead to harm
     • Are people rational

5. Equality of Opportunity

   • Evolved with capitilsm
     • This system promotes inequality
     • view people as equal helps combat this
   • competition takes place based on equality
   • Allows people to become less equal and improve
     • Not equal results
   • Issues
     • Society is not equal
     • Opportunity is not always possible
       • different forms of Capital
         • social
         • Cultural
         • economic

6. Social Justice Based on Merit

   • Gain rewards in relation to merit
   • see just procedures instead of just outcomes
   • issues
     • Society is not equal so some people can progress further without merit
     • Outcomes are important too

7. Tollerance

   •  Society should accept a variety of religious, moral and political opinions
   • All people deserve basic human rights
   • conviction of a pluralist society which accommodates a multiplicity of beliefs

8. Private and Public Life

   • public and private sphere
     • seperated
     • government can not be involved in the private sphear
     • government can only interfere in cases of harm
   • issues
     • What is harm
     • where is the line between public and private