The General Theory of Liberty: Reconciling Freedom, Property, and Prosperity

Liberty, or freedom, is the absence of some sort of constraint on something. Most people think their own liberty is important. Classical liberals and libertarians love interpersonal or political liberty and almost worship it, but most of them, sadly, can’t explain what it is. Other people, even socialists, often declare that they like liberty a lot, but usually they too can’t tell us what it is.

Interpersonal liberty is not about the freedom to jump over buildings or levitate. That people a...