Second Treatise of Government
by John Locke · first published 2016
25% recommend70% neutral5% critical
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Economics: - The Wealth of Nations, Adam Smith - Das Kapital, Karl Marx - That Which Is Seen, and That Which Is Not Seen, Frederic Bastiat Philosophy / Politics: - The Republic, Plato - Second Treatise on Government, John Locke - The Law, Frederic Bastiat - Leviathan, Thomas Hobbes - Meditations, Marcus Aurelius - Democracy in America, Alexis de Toqueville - On Liberty, John Stuart Mill Fiction: - The Celebrated…
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite books or essays written at least 100 years ago?” ↗If you are genuinely curious then read some political theory. Such as John Locke's second treatise on government, and "For Individual Rights" (see Amazon).
on “The Drone Zone” ↗The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith On the Duty of Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau Second Treatise on Government, John Locke
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite books or essays written at least 100 years ago?” ↗…but it covers a lot of ground): https://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/great-minds-of-the-western-intellectual-tradition-3rd-edition.html 7. Original Sources! Especially: A. John Locke's Second Treatise of Government B. Descartes First Meditation (this will blow your mind) C. Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason D. Kant's Metaphysics of Morals E. If you are into politics and/or economics…
on “Ask HN: What has been your most rewarding job or project and why?” ↗There are a lot of books you should read about this stuff; it'll make you more educated on it than any reply here can. I'd start with Rousseau's 'The Social Contract,' Locke's second treatise on government, Hobbes' 'Leviathan', John Stuart Mill's 'On Utilitarianism,' Kant's Critique of Pure Reason, and Hume's Political Discourses.
on “Philae has landed” ↗…nothing about a "right to overthrow [a] corrupt government" in the Constitution either. nullsocket may be thinking of the Declaration of Independence, and its basis in the social contract theory of Locke's Second Treatise on Government.)
on “Surveillance is not about protecting us. It's about control.” ↗Locke, who you dismiss with a vague handwave, made, in the Second Treatise on Government, an explicitly moral case for property rights founded upon the principal of individual autonomy. This was not a pragmatic argument. Locke, of course, greatly predates Rand; making a moral rather than…
on “Italian court rules food theft 'not a crime' if hungry” ↗…to make sure the federal military never became large or oppressive. To say that the National Guard replaces the notion of the militia runs contrary to what the Founders said and wrote. F.John Locke’s Second Treatise of Government (1690) aimed at reforming Britain’s monarchy and parliamentary system and limiting the power of government, and profoundly influenced the Founders and all Western Civilization. John Locke explained that…
on “The five extra words that can fix the Second Amendment (2014)” ↗“Where there is no law, there is no freedom.” John Locke, Second Treatise of Government (1689)
on “Buyer cancels showing after Deflock shows two cameras utilized by the HOA” ↗Second Treatise of Government - Locke On Liberty - Mill The Communist Manifesto - Marx & Engels Eros & Civilization - Marcuse Civilization and Its Discontents - Freud The Road To Serfdom - Hayak Milestones - Qutb
on “What are you reading?” ↗…preservation of all mankind... is... put into every man's hands, whereby everyone has a right to punish the transgressors of that law to such a degree as may hinder its violation" -- John Locke, Second Treatise of Government
on “Licensing in a Post Copyright World” ↗Could it be that some people subscribe to the theory of the proper role and structure of government evinced by the Declaration of Independence? Maybe some are fond of John Locke's Second Treatise of Government? of rights as an inalienable attribute of the ultimate minority, the individual? and of a government limited in purpose and scope so that it protects us, nothing more?
on “Why Inequality Matters” ↗…my hands are my property. What I remove from a state of nature and mix my labor with, becomes my property. That's how asteroids and planets ought to and will become property. See Chapter V of Locke's Second Treatise of Government, Of Property.
on “$10 Quintilian Asteroid to Stay Out of Reach of Space Miners” ↗John Locke talks extensively about Natural Rights (and he was the source of inspiration to America's founding fathers). His Second Treatise of Government goes deep into his explanation. There have been many thinkers that have challenged Locke. I am currently reading the Second Treatise to try and really understand Locke's position before I make up my…
on “Google Workers Urge C.E.O. To Pull Out of Pentagon A.I. Project” ↗The Law by Frédéric Bastiat [1] Weighing in at 75 pages, you can read this 176 year old classic in a weekend. For some reason Locke's Second Treatise on Government made it into the canon as the be-and-end-all of the classical liberal political philosophy, and this masterwork was overlooked. Just read it. [1] https://mises.org/library/law
on “Ask HN: What was the one book that you read and it actually changed your life?” ↗