And any obstruction, price, or penalty, interposed by the government, to the exercise of that right, is a practical violation of the right itself.
Lysander Spooner: “And any obstruction, price, or penalty, interposed by the government, to the exercise of that right, is a practical…”
Editor's note · Context
Spooner argues that any government-imposed barriers to trade violate natural rights.
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For all these reasons, they are not only modest and sensible, but really frank, honest, and honorable villains, contrasted with these courts of injustice, and the lawmakers by whom these courts are established.
When they have once taken our money, they have the decency to get out of our sight as soon as possible; they do not persist in following us, and robbing us, again and again, so long as we produce anything that they can take from us.
They do not tell us of the almshouses, hospitals, schools, churches, etc., which, out of the purest charity and benevolence, they maintain for our benefit, out of the money they take from us.
They do not carry their heads high, above all other men, and demand our reverence and admiration, as statesmen, patriots, and benefactors.