Property, Rule of Law & Freedom

Let's Return to Constitutional Economic Rights Before it's Too Late

While in the midst of a wholesale reevaluation of private property rights, it 's time to reexamine the history of US property rights. What exactly caused America’s unparallelled level of prosperity? Certainly our economic success created unparallelled global influence & military might. But what factors allowed America’s stunning economic growth? This success was driven by a Rule of Law regime which supported the Constitution’s unique defense of private property.

What is the relationship between property, Rule of Law & prosperity? History shows unless private property is protected by Rule of Law, markets will not flourish. Therefore, wealth will not grow and every other good or need will suffer. The reasons for this is human nature. People are not automatons. Instead, human motivation and productivity are tied into rewards and risks found in any undertaking. Yet, if government takes away the rewards of ambition, leaving behind only the risks, then productivity will fall precipitously.

Marxist-influenced thinking insists human nature does not exist. This single presumption has caused more chaos than any other leftist idea. It’s a direct result of assuming God is a fiction. But, if there is no God, mankind cannot be made in His likeness—Imago Dei. Further, if humans evolved from a random series of directionless events, and there is no soul, then anything goes, nothing is out of bounds for ethics or morality. Or, as Dostyevski believed—Without God, everything is possible. The presumption mankind is a soulless, material being is the most destructive element in the progressive worldview, the root cause of all subsequent economic failure.

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