21
See also: Markets and morality 22–23 ■ Provision of public goods and
services 46–47 ■ Marxist economics 100–05 ■ Definitions of economics 171
LET TRADING BEGIN
for private property. The Greek
philosopher Aristotle argued that
“property should be private.” He
pointed out that when property
is held in common, no one takes
responsibility to maintain and
improve it. Moreover, people can
only become generous if they have
something to give away.
A right to property
In the 17th century all land and
housing in Europe was effectively
owned by monarchs. The English
philosopher John Locke (1632–1704),
however, spoke out for individual
rights, saying that as God gave us
dominion over our own bodies, we
also have dominion over the things
we make. The German philosopher
Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) later
argued that private property is a
legitimate expression of the self.
Another German philosopher,
however, rejected the notion of
private property entirely. Karl Marx
insisted that the concept of private
property is nothing but a device by
which the capitalist expropriates
the labor of the proletarian, keeps
him in slavery, and excludes him.
The proletariat is effectively locked
out of the select group that controls
all wealth and power. ■How private?
In every modern society some
things are shared as collective
property, such as streets and
parks. Others, such as cars,
are private property. Property
rights, or legal ownership,
normally confers on the owner
exclusive rights over a
particular resource, but this
is not always the case.
The owner of a house in a
historic district, for instance,
might not be allowed to knock
it down and replace it with
a skyscraper or a factory,
or even change the use of
the current building. The
governments of every country
in the world reserve the right
to override private ownership
when this is deemed necessary,
for reasons varying from the
needs of infrastructure to
national safety issues. Even in
the US, a staunchly capitalist
nation, the government may
force a property owner to
relinquish his or her rights.
However, the 14th amendment
to the Constitution softens
this blow by stating that the
owner must be compensated
with the market price.When property
is held in
common...Property should
be private.... no one maintains
it (everyone will
act self-interestedly
and assume
someone else will
do the work).... it provides
little incentive for
individuals to trade
and invest.... it prevents
people from acting
benevolently
(people cannot be
generous if they
don’t have anything
to give away).It is clearly better that property
should be private, but the
use of it common; and
the special business of the
legislator is to create in men
this benevolent disposition.
Aristotle