Thomas Jefferson on Liberty
Of liberty I would say that, in the whole plenitude of its extent, it
is unobstructed action according to our will. But rightful liberty is
unobstructed action according to our will within limits drawn around us
by the equal rights of others. I do not add “within the limits of the
law,” because law is often but the tyrant’s will, and always so when it
violates the right of an individual. [added emphasis mine]
I’d never seen that before, but it’s excellent, particularly for its subordination of the law to liberty. I’ll add that if you accept that definition, then you must honestly infer by consequence that America simply does not operate on this principle. America is not a free country of individual liberty. It’s just not, and that’s a plain fact. Via Rockwell.
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Free The Animal is an eclectic writing project about everything since November 2003. 23 years, 5,500 posts, 5 million words.
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