Personal liberty boils down to two things:
*Don't hurt me.
*Don't take MY stuff.
Those apply equally to other people, and to GOVERNMENT.
As a society, we have civil law to prosecute individuals who violate either of the two items above. As citizens, it is our duty (in this country, where the government works for us) to rein in the government when it steps out of its prescribed bounds.
For those prescribed bounds, see the US Constitution. States have other additional duties and powers. The federal government was set up to deal with international issues like defense and immigration; society-wide standards like currency, patents, and protection of contracts; and with individuals ONLY for bankruptcy and counterfeiting the currency.
EVERYTHING ELSE was to be left to the people or the states.
See how far from that we have been pushed, and you see the magnitude of the work we must do to fix this.
As for the ubiquitous objection, "What about the poor and the sick?" -- those are very specifically areas NOT given to the federal government. They were left for the PEOPLE and the STATES. If people will not help, that is a problem of morals and ethics - to be solved with moral and ethical instruction by families and churches, primarily. Morality and ethics CAN NOT be legislated. Attempting to do so is counter-productive; worse than useless.
*Don't hurt me.
*Don't take MY stuff.
Those apply equally to other people, and to GOVERNMENT.
As a society, we have civil law to prosecute individuals who violate either of the two items above. As citizens, it is our duty (in this country, where the government works for us) to rein in the government when it steps out of its prescribed bounds.
For those prescribed bounds, see the US Constitution. States have other additional duties and powers. The federal government was set up to deal with international issues like defense and immigration; society-wide standards like currency, patents, and protection of contracts; and with individuals ONLY for bankruptcy and counterfeiting the currency.
EVERYTHING ELSE was to be left to the people or the states.
See how far from that we have been pushed, and you see the magnitude of the work we must do to fix this.
As for the ubiquitous objection, "What about the poor and the sick?" -- those are very specifically areas NOT given to the federal government. They were left for the PEOPLE and the STATES. If people will not help, that is a problem of morals and ethics - to be solved with moral and ethical instruction by families and churches, primarily. Morality and ethics CAN NOT be legislated. Attempting to do so is counter-productive; worse than useless.
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