Illiberal Libertarians: Why Libertarianism Is Not a Liberal View

Liberalism as a philosophical doctrine can be distinguished from liberalism as a system of social and political institutions. Philosophical liberalism maintains that, first, there is a plurality of intrinsic goods, and that no single way of life can encompass them all. There are then different ways of living worth affirming for their own sake. Second, whatever intrinsic goods are appropriate for individuals, their having the freedom to determine and pursue their conceptions of the good is essential to their living a good life. Finally, necessary to individuals’ good is that their freely adopted conceptions of the good be consistent with justice. All have an interest in exercising their freedom so as to respect others’ basic rights and other requirements of justice. While this does not mean that justice is necessarily an intrinsic good (although it can be), it does mean that observing justice’s demands is a normal precondition of living a good life. Kant, Mill, Rawls, Berlin, Dworkin, Raz, Nagel, Ackerman, Barry, and many others endorse some version of these claims. Philosophical liberalism is but one way to argue for liberal institutions, including a