Virtually every social conflict can be solved with a proper understanding of property rights. As an example, consider the frequent claims that a business has engaged in discriminatory practices. The right to property means the freedom to create, attain, use, keep, trade, and dispose of material values. It means that the owner of a parcel…
If we examine nearly any political issue, from health care to housing, from jobs to wages, we will find claims of conflicting “rights.” Individuals claim that they have a right to decent housing, while landlords claim that they have a right to choose their tenants. Employees claim that they have a right to a “living…
Gov. Gregg Abbott recently signed a bill that legalizes temporary lemonade stands–the kind that children operate to make a few dollars. Abbott called the bill a “commonsense law.” While this is true, it fails to address the fundamental issue. Why should children need the government’s permission to operate a lemonade stand? If a child wants…
One aspect of property rights that is often overlooked is the freedom to create material values. If we are not free to create material values–property–then the right to property does not exist. Human life requires material values. An individual who is not free to create the values that his life requires is denied the means…
President Trump, among others, has made political hay of America’s trade deficit with China. To correct this alleged problem, the President has imposed a number of tariffs on goods imported from China. But trade does not occur between nations; trade occurs between individuals If a Texan buys groceries at Kroger, the exchange is not between…
As of September, individuals in Texas will no longer require a license from the state to offer plumbing services. Talk show host Michael Berry, who often opposes occupational licensing, recently criticized this move. Berry correctly noted that occupational licensing is enacted under the pretense of protecting the public. He criticized the licensing of hair braiders…
Former Arlington mayor Richard Greene isn’t happy with the state legislature. He decries the state’s efforts to restrict what local governments can do, and laments the fact that state legislators are thinking about shutting down the Texas Municipal League. That organization, he claims, works “to protect individual rights to develop the communities where they live…
One of the complaints about short-term rentals (STRs) is that some of them turn into “party houses”–a weekend destination for raucous and irresponsible visitors to a city. In response, many homeowners and city officials want to heavily regulate STRs, and in some cases, simply ban them. But this isn’t the moral approach. Certainly, “party houses”…
Debates over property rights issues are often filled with claims that reveal a complete misunderstanding of property rights. For example, in a recent article on the Dallas Observer website regarding the regulation of short-term rentals (STRs), a former Arlington council member is quoted: “Whose private property rights are we going to be protecting?” The question…
A recent opinion piece in the Houston Chronicle asks, “Why can’t Montrose protect its trees?” The simple answer is, Montrose doesn’t own any trees. Montrose is a neighborhood and the trees on private property are owned by the property owner. But this answer isn’t good enough for the author. The author–Clifford Pugh–laments that “some will…
A quiet movement is underway in Texas to reform the state’s mineral laws. The proposed reform would force owners to “pool” their resources. Pooling is the joining together or a combination of small tracts or portions of tracts for the purpose of having sufficient acreage to receive a well drilling permit under the relevant state…