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Single Idea 18642

[filed under theme 24. Political Theory / D. Ideologies / 2. Anarchism ]

Full Idea

Individuals have rights, and there are things no person or group may do to them (without violating their rights). So strong and far-reaching are these rights that they raise the question of what, if anything, the state and its officials may do.

Gist of Idea

Individual rights are so strong that the state and its officials must be very limited in power

Source

Robert Nozick (Anarchy,State, and Utopia [1974], Pref)

Book Ref

Nozick,Robert: 'Anarchy,State, and Utopia' [Blackwell 1980], p.-8

A Reaction

This claim appears to be an axiom, but I'm not sure that the notion of 'rights' make any sense unless someone is granting the rights, where the someone is either a strong individual, or the community (perhaps represented by the state).

The 14 ideas with the same theme [self-rule by citizens, and abolition of government]:

539 Nothing is worse for mankind than anarchy [Antiphon]
5968 Diogenes masturbated in public, wishing he could get rid of hunger so easily [Diogenes of Sin., by Plutarch]
23163 In an anarchy universities, research, books, and even seaside holidays, would be impossible [Russell]
23168 A state is essential, to control greedy or predatory impulses [Russell]
21521 Anarchy does not maximise liberty [Russell]
23809 Our only social duty is to try to limit evil [Weil]
23870 Decentralisation is only possible by co-operation between strong and weak - which is absurd [Weil]
18642 Individual rights are so strong that the state and its officials must be very limited in power [Nozick]
20450 The state, law, bureaucracy and capital are limitations on life, so I prefer federalist anarchism [Critchley]
20452 Anarchism used to be libertarian (especially for sexuality), but now concerns responsibility [Critchley]
20487 A realistic and less utopian anarchism looks increasingly like liberal democracy [Wolff,J]
20488 It is hard for anarchists to deny that we need experts [Wolff,J]
20578 Anarchists prefer local and communal government [Oksala]
9391 Why do anarchists drink herbal tea? [Sommers,W]