Murray N. Rothbard vs. the Philosophers - Ludwig von Mises Institute

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LAW AND NATURE IN THE WORK OF MURRAY N. ROTHBARD 13 theory of subjective rights has its roots in the nominalist philosophy of Ockham, Tierney identifies the concept of ius as a subjective right in the writings of the twelfth-century canonists. John Finnis and Germain Grisez also follow the continuity line, but they are really more Kantians than true Thomists. 13 In point of fact, Finnis and Grisez integrate natural law with a deontological theory—with elements deriving from Kant. 14 While not forgetting the many different positions taken by today’s supporters of the theory of natural rights, Rothbard can be counted among those who, like Henry Veatch, base natural rights on the Aristotelian/Thomist theory of natural law. 15 However, Rothbard’s position is particularly original for two reasons: first, because from the concept of self-ownership, he deduces the axiom of nonaggression, the true cornerstone of the Rothbardian system, which he views as a clarification of the classic triad of the natural rights to life, liberty, and property; 16 second, because of the extreme conclusions that Rothbard arrives at regarding natural law and the role of the state. In fact, Rothbard wants “to establish an objective ethics which affirms the overriding value of liberty, and morally condemns all forms of statism.” 17 The theme of the rational foundation of ethics and absolute values becomes predominant in Rothbard’s comments on the Symposium on Relativism organized by the 13John Finnis, Natural Law and Natural Rights (Oxford: Clarendon, 1980). 14Henry B. Veatch, Human Rights: Fact or Fancy? (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1985), p. 104. 15For an examination of these distinctions, see Raimondo Cubeddu, “Legge naturale o diritti naturali? Alcune questioni di filosofia politica liberale,” Quaderni dell’Istituto Acton 15 (2004). 16It seems that Rothbard owes this idea to Ayn Rand. Cf. Ayn Rand, “Man’s Rights,” in The Virtue of Selfishness (New York: Signet, 1964). 17Rothbard, The Ethics of Liberty, p. 213.
MURRAY N. ROTHBARD VS. THE PHILOSOPHERS: UNPUBLISHED WRITINGS 14 ON HAYEK, MISES, STRAUSS, AND POLYANI Volker Fund. The conference, held in 1960, witnessed a contrast between Mises and Leoni on one side, and Strauss on the other. 18 Obviously, in this case, Rothbard sides with Strauss. From the time of his Prefatory Note, Rothbard makes it clear he is in favor of absolute values: The absolutist believes that man’s mind, employing reason . . . is capable of discovering and knowing truth: including the truth about reality, and the truth about what is best for man and best for himself as an individual. The relativist denies this, denies that man’s reason is capable of knowing truth, and does so by claiming that rather than being absolute, truth is relative to something else. . . . Philosophically, I believe that libertarianism—and the wider creed of sound individualism of which libertarianism is a part—must rest on absolutism and deny relativism. 19 This represents a clear—and apparently definitive—division within the Austrian School of economics, with Hayek and the Hayekians on one side and many of the American disciples of the School (among whom are libertarians à la Rothbard) on the other. The concept of natural law is in some ways extraneous to the Austrian School of economics, which favors an evolutionary conception of institutions and law following the approach of Menger and Hayek. 18The conference papers were published in H. Schoeck and J.W. Wiggins, eds., Relativism and the Study of Man (Princeton, N.J.: D. Van Nostrand, 1961). 19Rothbard, “The Symposium on Relativism: A Critique”; see p. 103 in this volume.
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CHRONOLOGY OF THE LIFE AND WORKS OF
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REFERENCES 1 Buckley, William F. Go
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REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY 151 BIB
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REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY 153 Dav
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REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY 155 giv
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“Absolutes, Relativism, and the S
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INDEX 161 environment, 123-24 Essay
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INDEX 163 Jesuits, 24 judges, 69 ju
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INDEX 165 Oriental Despotism (Wittf
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INDEX 167 Socrates, 26n42 solidarit
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Murray N. Rothbard vs. the Philosophers - Ludwig von Mises Institute

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