Aligning Values and Politics

Empowerment Versus Entitlement

Michael Gendre, Nicolás Sánchez

• Publisher: University Press of America
• Year: 2016
• eBook ISBN: 9780761867241
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Philosophy
• Subtopic: Empiricism in Philosophy

Aligning Values and Politics argues that empowering individuals for self-actualization is an indispensable tool for attaining freedom; therefore, politics must align with the promotion of self-actualization. Private property rights have in the past helped people to develop skills, but such rights were abused. Once these rights are combined with an ethics of responsibility, the book opens the doors to a nonpartisan analysis of income inequality, inheritance, race relations, abortion and governance. The book argues that the American government is engaged in producing "bread and circuses," inducing people into living vicariously. Using the ideas of Immanuel Kant, the authors claim that we can return to a civil society that values independence rather than entitlements.

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• Manipulating People by Means of “Bread and Circuses;” Then and Now
• The Philosophical Case for Limiting Government
• Caring for Others Requires a Principle of Duty
• Drawing the Line between Self-Actualization and Our Duty to Others
• Private Property Expands Our Opportunities
• Imposing Restrictions on Inheritance
• Using Property Rights to Better Understand Abortion and Adoption
• The Market Is the Best Engine for Conflict Resolution
• Discrimination as a Moral and Strategic Challenge
• The Rise of Property Rights in Historical Context
• Bringing Back Legitimacy to Government
• Proposed Legal and Constitutional Changes
• The Obstacles That We Still Face
• The Road to Wealth Creation in a Society with Meaningful Lives
• Imperialism as a Threat to American Governance
• From Ancients to Moderns
• Afterword and Summary in the Form of an Open Letter
• Appendix A
• Appendix B
• Appendix C
• Bibliography
• Index
• About the Authors