Latest Thinking

Does It Matter What the Declaration of Independence Means?

Jul 3, 2015

Does It Matter What the Declaration of Independence Means?

The answer to the question of whether it matters what the Declaration of Independence...

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Thomas Jefferson, Natural Rights and the Declaration of Independence

Jul 3, 2015

Thomas Jefferson, Natural Rights and the Declaration of Independence

Thomas Jefferson had a different view of rights than is commonly ascribed to the...

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Reply to Objection 1: Private Property Does Not Contradict Natural Law

Jul 3, 2015

Reply to Objection 1: Private Property Does Not Contradict Natural Law

Private property does not contradict natural law, in which everything is in common. Aquinas...

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The Second Human Competence with Private Property

Jul 2, 2015

The Second Human Competence with Private Property

In a surprise move, Aquinas bases the virtue of alms on the second human...

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Three Reasons Private Property Is Necessary

Jul 1, 2015

Three Reasons Private Property Is Necessary

Aquinas gives three reasons why private property is necessary, drawing heavily from Aristotle’s Politics....

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The First Human Competence with Private Property

Jun 30, 2015

The First Human Competence with Private Property

Aquinas argues that two human competences justify private property. The first is care and...

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Aquinas’s Justification of Private Property

Jun 30, 2015

Aquinas’s Justification of Private Property

After providing three objections to private property, Aquinas now puts forward his own view...

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Aquinas’s Third Objection to Private Property: Let no man call his own that which is common property

Jun 29, 2015

Aquinas’s Third Objection to Private Property: Let no man call his own that which is common property

Aquinas now poses the third objection to private property appealing to St. Ambrose. This...

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Aquinas’s Second Objection to Private Property: Don’t take too many seats in the theater

Jun 27, 2015

Aquinas’s Second Objection to Private Property: Don’t take too many seats in the theater

A rich person who keeps too much surplus is like a theater goer who...

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Aquinas on the Relationship of Natural Law and Human Law

Jun 23, 2015

Aquinas on the Relationship of Natural Law and Human Law

How does Aquinas understand private property’s relationship to natural law? This question is a...

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