The Purpose of Government in a Truly Free and Liberty-Loving Society

It is not the duty or obligation of the government to see that you are fed, clothed, housed, educated, or employed. It is, however, the duty and obligation of the government to see that no one, whether an individual, a group of individuals, a company or corporation, or even the government itself, stands in your way, in your own endeavor, to feed, clothe, house, educate, and find employment for yourself.

It is the duty of the government—one of its few legitimate duties—to protect your inalienable and absolute right to pursue your life, liberty, property, and happiness as you se fit, as you so choose, but only so long as your behavior is peaceful, voluntary, and honest.

The business of government is neither business itself nor the welfare of the individual. Rather, the business of the government is to protect all people equally—whether rich or poor, uneducated or educated, day laborer or corporate executive, small business owner or large business owner—in their choice of how to live their lives, just so long as their behavior does not violate or threaten to violate the rights of others.

Besides this duty and obligation of the government to equally protect the rights of all individuals, the government then only needs to get out of the way of individuals in their personal and business practices; their right to honestly contract for the use, rental, or sales of their time, their labor, or their property in a voluntary and peaceful manner.

People with their rights so protected can and will make a strong and healthy society. The greatest good for the greatest number will be achieved by such free people with their inalienable rights protected. They will work for their rational self-interest and the vast majority of them will be successful in providing for themselves and their families, at the very least.

If people are irresponsible they will suffer the consequences of their mistakes or irrational behavior. But more importantly, if they are hard-working, smart-working, and persistent they will accrue to themselves the rewards of their self-responsibility and their self-reliance.

Of course, there may be some people who do not wish to work hard or persistently, or who don’t value trying to utilize their talents to the best of their ability. There is nothing wrong with that. Such people, however, have no legitimate claim to the wealth of others who are more dedicated to the work ethic. Nor does the government have the legitimate power to take your wealth and use it for the benefit of those who you have not voluntarily seen fit to support.

There is a case to be made regarding people who, through no fault of their own, have come upon hard times and need the help of others. History has shown that churches and private charity organizations can help such people more efficaciously than government bureaucracies which, by their very nature, are wasteful and inefficient.

There can be no greater teacher than experience. When you must fully suffer the consequences of your mistaken or irresponsible actions, or fully enjoy the rewards of your right actions, you will quickly learn the most efficient and rewarding use of your mind, your body, and your property. But, of course, this can only work if the government protects the right of all people to honestly and peacefully do as they choose, then gets out of the way.