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Principles for Unprincipled Times
Democrats and “Progressives” are not known for their defense of property rights. Indeed, most of their proposals involve the violation of the right to property. Yet, many Texans on the political Left have recently invoked property rights in their opposition to Republicans. On the other hand, Republicans have cited property rights in their opposition to…
Who Owns the Beach?
In 2018, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled that homeowners with property on Lake Michigan do not own the beach. The ruling was upheld by a federal appeals court in May 2022. Three property owners are now fighting back. They hope to have their case heard by the United States Supreme Court and the highest court…
Principles vs. the Mob
In September, the Austin American-Statesman published a three-part series on the growing conflict between the owners of some short-term rentals (STRs) and their neighbors. While the series was intended to demonstrate the need for more stringent enforcement of Austin’s STR regulations, it unwittingly demonstrated a more fundamental issue: the lack of principles underlying the entire…
Roadside Robbery
Civil asset forfeiture is a process by which law enforcement agencies can seize private property that they suspect has been obtained by or used in the commission of a crime. The property owner must then fight to regain his property. Unlike criminal cases, in civil asset forfeiture, the burden of proof is on the property…
Economic Freedom and Property Rights
Each year, the Fraser Institute releases an Economic Freedom in North America report. In its most recent report, Florida is the most economically free state and Texas is in third place. New York is the least free, and its west coast intellectual cousin–California–occupies the forty-seventh position. Conservative organizations point out that economic freedom leads to…
Property Rights in Space: A New Framework
The new framework presented here rejects the premises that dominate the discussion of property rights in space. It rejects the premise that the “celestial commons” belongs to all of mankind. The “celestial commons” is unowned. It is a vast resource that is open to every human being to explore and exploit if they are able…