The Executive Compass and Its Relation to the Good Society

Another area in which it is suggested that modern liberalism has departed from classical liberalism is freedom. Classical liberals believe in negative freedom. This is simply that there should be an absence of external constraints on the individual and as such they should be left alone to make their own choices. In this way classical liberals were heavily influenced by the natural rights theories of John Locke and Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson claimed that we were born with inalienable rights and therefore no individual or government had the right to take these away. Freedom from constraints is therefore an essential condition for exercising these rights. In practise, this has meant that classical liberals have advocated a minimal state or what John Locke referred to as the ‘night-watchman state’. The activities of this state should be limited to the enforcement of contracts, maintaining order and protection from foreign threats to prevent the state from infringing on individual liberties as much as possible.

Similarly, liberty as represented through the eternal flame is widely accepted as an intrinsic part of humanity. Where however, does this acceptance of liberty as a core value of human existence find its roots? Jefferson argued that liberty has always existed in the form of inalienable rights given to us by a divine creator. Adams claimed that man has a natural right to “remain in a state of nature,” and join a society if he so pleases. Winthrop believed that natural rights must be regulated to protect man from himself and that authority was guiding light of God. Beyond the brilliant minds these men comparably share, they all carry the burden of being human. Their arguments, similar to their nature, are imperfect and their words can oftentimes be contradicting with their actions. This is not to say the idea of liberty is faulty simply because it’s manmade, and therefore illegitimate; but rather liberty and “inalienable rights” are symbol of human achievement, and a national accomplishment that can grow and change. Liberty is a malleable idea that has progressed with our society for centuries; it has inspired our nation to construct a government conducive to human happiness, and ultimately work towards a better

In the event that the government turns out to be tyrannical, the people have the power and the right to overthrow it and bring appropriate changes for the good of all. However, this change has to be instituted rationally (Riley, 1990).

Liberalism, in general, was an ideological movement that emerged out of the ideas of the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution in the early 19th century. It embraced the ideas of individualism which were established in the Renaissance and Reformation era. The Renaissance period sparked a belief in the importance of the individual in society. It helped promote the beliefs of classical liberalism which gradually formed into the liberal ideology of the 19th century. Individuals that were waiting to get their individual rights and freedoms were allowed to finally gain liberty and power through this period of time. Classical liberalism developed

Although liberals agree about the value of liberty, their views on what it means to be ‘free’ vary significantly. It was Isaiah Berlin who first created the concepts of negative and positive freedom that helped to differentiate between the two liberals’ views of freedom. The concept of negative freedom was adopted by classical liberals, who believed that freedom was defined as being left alone and free from interference. Classical liberals believed this theory to mean that individuals should be free from external restrictions or constraints. Modern liberals, on the other hand, believed in positive freedom. This, modernist’s perceived to means that all individuals have the ability to be their own master, and thus reach full autonomy. Unlike classical liberals, who had little faith in humankind, Modernists conveyed humans in a much more positive light: people are rational beings that are capable, and therefore should be able, to flourish and

Liberalism is a major ideology in the world. Liberalism is changing at a constant rate as it is adapting to new views as the world is changing. Furthermore, the goal of the Liberalism is to ensure that “Liberal ideology is a commitment to the individual and the desire to construct a society… [Where] people can satisfy their interest and achieve fulfilment… Liberals [also] believe that human beings are, first and foremost, individuals” (Heywood 24). Liberals want to create a society in which people can achieve their goals, and where there are free to do what they please. That all individuals have the right to shape their future, and that each individual should have equal rights in both legal and political matters. There are two major types of

Liberalism started with the ideas of the Enlightenment. Two of these ideas were freedom of speech and freedom of the individual, and kept growing from there. Liberalism is the belief in a small central government and no monarchy. The liberalists defended the ideas of the definitive rights of an individual’s liberty, equality and property. The liberalists wanted their government to be established on written laws and a constitution based on equality.

Liberty is in inalienable right of each and every person, and is the pre-political concept that gives us intrinsic worth.

Liberalism emphasizes the importance of Rights in society, and that society’s role is to protect these rights and put them first.

During the period beginning at the end of WWII and the early 1980’s, there was period of liberalism throughout all aspects of American politics and culture. The liberalism during this era was referred to as rights liberalism, which was predicated on the idea that the state had the responsibility to protect individuals from discrimination. This directly deviates from the classical liberalism that was very common before the Progressive Era, which was based on the idea that liberty came from the government having a set role in society and never attempting to affect aspects of society it was never prescribed. Rights liberalism also deviated from the social welfare during the 1930’s in promoting the need for a more egalitarian society. This version

“Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” is a phrase nearly every American knows as being the three unalienable rights that cannot be revoked by the government. These self-evident truths first appeared in the Declaration of Independence, a document written to rid the United States from its torrid oppressors. Liberty, however, is the most important of the three, seeing as if American did not have it, residents would simply be slaves to their government and could not be truly free-thinking citizens.

A liberal state believes that man is rational, and capable of making decisions that are in the best interest of the people. Source I possess liberal aspects, as it indicates that people should be given the ability to manage their own economics. By suggesting that the government and taxpayers make the distinction between citizens who can’t work, and those who won’t, it is indicated that the people already have some level of control. If the government had complete control over the economic system, there would be no reason for them to intervene any more. Another element of the source suggests that in a liberal state “there will always be those in need,” which emphasizes the values of modern liberalism. Modern liberalism demonstrates a balance

Liberalism is a collection of political, social and economic philosophies that is centered around the rights of personal liberties, civil rights, economic freedom, controlled and democratic government and the rule of law. A controlled and democratic government is instrumental to liberalism. A controlled government is one restricted by the law. The most common example of this can be found in the United States Constitution. The Constitution has outlined the roles and restrictions of each branch of government while also setting a system of checks and balances.

Liberalism was an important concept but it also lost some of its importance in order to emerge as a new form. In the today’s world hardly any one speaks for the freedom and democracy

The idea of liberty, or freedom, varies between different theorists. One theorist, Isaiah Berlin, focused on the difference between two different ways of thinking about political liberty (Cherniss & Hardy, 2010). Berlin called these two different concepts negative and positive liberty. According to Berlin, negative freedom can be defined as ‘freedom from’, that is, freedom from constraint or interference of others. In contrast, positive freedom can be defined in two ways: ‘freedom to’, that is the ability to pursue and achieve willed goals; and also as autonomy or self-rule, as opposed to the dependence on others (Cherniss & Hardy, 2010). Keeping the idea of positive liberty at