liberalism

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Liberalism

Liberalism, the ideology or belief in equality, democracy, freedom and human rights is historically connected to great thinkers such as Montesquieu and Joh Locke. It is one of the political movements that has dominated the major parts of the last four centuries. By definition, liberalism is a moral or political philosophy that is based on liberty and equality before the law and consent of the government. While liberals advocate a wide array of views, they generally support free markets, individual rights, capitalism, and democracy, several forms of equality, freedom of both speech and religion, and racial equality and internationalism. While it started long time ago during the American revolution of 1776, the 19^th century saw liberal governments that were established in nations across South America and Europe (Solari, 2017). Whereas different governments or societies define liberalism in different ways, there are certain themes or principles that must be observed or demonstrated for any government or society to qualify as a liberals. This essay, therefore, describes the underpinning principles of liberalism and its view of the world at large.

One of the underpinning principles of liberalism is private property, which refers to the system that allocates particular objects such as pieces of land to individuals to manage and use at the exclusion of others and any detailed control by society.  According to the study conducted by Solari (2017), a private property is highly distinguishable from public property, an entity owned by the government or corporate. Private property is an important principle of liberalism since it allows individuals not only to own property but also use such property the way they want. A study conducted by Shypunov (2018) established that one of the major private property that has become an important part of liberalism is ability of individuals to own their land. Notably, before the philosophy of liberalism, certain property such as land was owned by state hence it was the state to determine what to do with such property. This deprived people economic freedom. With the introduction of ideology of liberalism and introduction of private property, individuals have the right and freedom to use the good, the right to earn income from the good, the right to transfer the good to others, alter it, abandon it, or destroy it (the right to ownership cessation), and the right to enforce property rights.

Another important underpinning principle of liberalism is economic freedom. Also known as economic liberty, economic freedom is that ability of individuals of a particular state or society to take their own economic actions.  That major approach to economic freedom comes from the liberal tradition that emphasizes on free trade, free market, and privacy property.  Notably, the liberal free market view point defines the economic liberty as the freedom to produce, consume, and trade any goods and services without use of fraud, theft or force. As such, economic freedom is the fundamental right of every person to control their own property and labor. According to Shypunov (2018), before ideologies as well as revolutions that came up with liberalism, some individuals were forced to work for the government or produce certain commodities that they were not entitled to use as the state or the society had control over such property. Generally, countries such as the United States that attained liberalism long before some of the developing countries have higher gross domestic product per capita, growth rate as well as better education quality, healthcare, income quality, and environment protection.

The next principle of liberalism is individual rights and freedom.  The concept of individual rights and freedom relates to the freedom from interference from other individual as well as that state or any community organizations. Individual rights and freedom refers to the liberties of every person to pursue life and goals without any interference form the government. Examples of individual rights and freedom are associated with personal liberty such as freedom of association, religion, right to life and liberty of personal security. It also includes the pursuit to happiness. This principles is a fundamental human right that is the baseline of liberalism. It gives individuals the right to express themselves freely on important issues that affect the society and allows people to access information and play important role in the society. Additionally, it allows people to choose their way of life such religion and denomination. A study conducted by Solari (2017) revealed that before the ideology of liberalism, individuals were forced to specific ideologies that brought the issue of forced labor and slavery. However, Easton (2020) states that although liberalism started long time ago, there are certain regions that still lag behind as certain choices are still made by the government or the communities. According to Datzenko (2016), there are certain regions that one cannot practice Christianity or Islamic based on the dominant religious affiliation in such areas. This is against the principle of right to freedom that allows people to choose their way of life as long they do not interfere with others.

The last and important principle of liberalism is the rule of law. Notably, the rule of law is the foundation that is used by liberates to protect individuals and their private properties.  It means that rule of law decides that rules of the game in a society. A study conducted by Archard (2018) reveals that although several principles are important for liberates, rule of law is more significant than all of them and it is the reason that countries come up with constitutions that governs them. Basically, rule of law restricts the authorities and other individuals to operate within the law and if they disobey such rules then they are also punished. In most current regimes, rule of law commands that even the president can be jailed if he or she violates the right of people. Although some regimes state that a sitting president is above the law he or she is answerable to certain authorities and can even be jailed after leaving the office if any case he or she violated the law. Rule of law, therefore, allows people to operate in human ways hence prevents violation of people’s rights. Therefore, in a liberal constitutional society, there are clear and stable rules for what is legal and what is not. All peaceful activities are permitted, while all violent activity are prohibited.

Liberalism view the world as a free place where individuals have rights that include freedom to speech, freedom of association, and the right to life without threats. According to liberals, it is through liberalism that the world has attained the massive revolutions such as industrial and technological that have led to massive development across the globe. Liberalism view the world as a static when its principles of freedom to economy, speech, and association are restricted. Based on the ideologies of liberalism, freedom of association and free market are the single most sources of technological and industrial advancement that the world is experiencing. Additionally, the ability of people to exercise their power and choice enable them to select leaders that are development oriented and have the ability to consider the well-being of every individual in the society. Thus, liberalism is one of the ideologies that ensure peaceful state of every individual hence creates a suitable environment for human development.

In conclusion, liberalism is a moral or political philosophy that is based on liberty and equality before the law and consent of the government. While different societies have got different styles of liberalism, they must demonstrate certain characteristics that show signs of freedom and association, factors known as principles of liberalism. Some of the underpinning principles of liberalism include private property, economic freedom, individual rights and freedom, and the rule of laws.  A society that practices the above principles is considered liberated hence human advancement in terms of social and economic development can be speedily achieved as demonstrated in countries such as the United State that embraced liberalism in its structure of governance long time ago before other countries. Based on the benefits of liberalism, it is the main cause of human development.

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