| | Autonomy-Centered Liberalism | Libertarianism |
| Basic Value | Enhancement of
and non-injury to autonomy |
Non-injury to powers associated with liberty and property |
General Objects of
Human Rights | Security, liberty, recognition, subsistence,
equality [, political participation] |
Life, liberty, property (understood as enjoining non-interference upon others) |
| Universalism? | Everyone has an equal basic right to the general objects of human rights | Everyone has an equal basic right to the general objects of human rights |
| Forfeiture of rights? | Yes, if one violates the rights of others | Yes, if one violates the rights of others |
| View of sexual morality | Activities that do not violate human rights
are not the business of the government; through mutual voluntary agreements people may impose additional
restrictions upon each other. | Activities that do not violate non-interference rights are not the business of the government; through mutual voluntary agreements people may impose additional
restrictions upon each other.
|
| Purpose of government | Protect, secure, and where necessary provide objects of human rights |
Protect and secure non-interference rights to life, liberty, property |
| Taxation | To pay for legitimate public expenses | To pay for protection of non-interference rights only |
| Rights to equal opportunity | Yes, in education, hiring, promotion | None |
| Material means to make security, liberty, and political rights effective |
Should be available at public expense, insofar as affordable. But see Self-Reliance.
| One has no right to receive material support apart from what one has contracted for. |
| Right to education | Yes, a baseline is necessary for everyone, to make other rights viable. | No, one must arrange for education for oneself or one's children in the marketplace. |
| Right to health care | Yes, a baseline is necessary for everyone, to make other rights viable. But see Self-Reliance. | No, one must arrange and pay for health care oneself or rely on charity. |
| Duty of beneficence? | Yes, when efforts required are not excessive | Charity is not morally required. |
Self-reliance /
Civil Society | People individually and collectively through voluntary arrangements should get the objects of HR for themselves, so far as possible |
Everyone has the right to exchange with, or be hired by, anyone willing to deal with him. |
| Duty to keep contracts | Important but subject to modification in light of rights and other duties | The backbone of interpersonal transactions |
| Growth of rich-poor gap |
Should be offset by maintaining a minimum threshhold for everyone;
perhaps also by linking privileges of the asset-rich with improvements for the least advantaged | Not a problem
if it arises through voluntary transfer and luck |
| Public financing of campaigns | Yes, to prevent excessive influence of asset-rich. Formal fairness is necessary but not sufficient. |
Formal fairness (e.g., following general rules, counting all votes of legitimate voters) is sufficient. |
| Pollution? | Wrong when it undermines the conditions needed for living an autonomous (including healthy) human life | Wrong when it degrades the value of our property without our consent. |