Proper function of government
From Internet: Knowledge and Community
In the “Libertarian Manifesto,” John Hospers states that the proper role of government is the protection of human rights. He describes these rights as the right to life, liberty, and property. He advocates for a minimalist role of government by saying that, “government should not enter into any other areas such as religion, social organizations, and economics” (26), suggesting that such an involvement by the government would infringe on those human rights. He goes on to classify laws into three categories: laws that protect individuals from themselves; laws that protect individuals from each other; and laws that require individuals to help other people. Hospers argues that it is only the laws which protect individuals from each other that the government has a responsibility to enforce. His contention with the first class of laws is that, “Behavior which harms no one else is strictly the individuals own affair” (30). While laws of the third class promote what he calls “moral cannibalism” in which individuals feel they have a moral entitlement to claim the benefits of some one else’s productivity. According to Hosper's, the proper role of government is to use force only in a retaliatory way towards those who initiated a crime. He makes explicit examples regarding the protection of property, in which he says, "If someone starts to destroy the machinery in a factory, the factory owner is also entitled to evict him and call the police."
