An Essay on the Constitution & Property Rights

[bushwacker]

Hey guys, here's a term paper for my Con law class that's due next week. Check it out and please give feedback for changes: http://libertarianactivism.com/writings/the-constitution-and-property-rights.pdf

Also, here's something cool from the Von Mises Institute about the Great Depression, since it was talked about on a recent show:

http://libertarianactivism.com/writings/great-depression-economics.pdf

[BenTucker]

the Shay's rebellion wasn't about fear of majority rule...

also no mention of Locke on the origin of property?

[bushwacker]

It's "Shays' Rebellion", as the guy was Daniel Shays not Shay. And yes, it did have to do with tyanny of the majority because the rural majority wanted to screw over the minority lenders by trying to get legislation to nullify their debts, and thus let them default.

[BenTucker]

if that were true (they were in the majority) why did they have to go outside of the legislative process and take up arms?

[bushwacker]

They were the majority in the state and wanted the state legislature to pass essentially a debt amnestly law. Remember, federalism didn't mean what it does today. In fact, "federalism" and "confederalism" were actually one and the same according to contemporary dictionaries if one cares to look at them.

[BenTucker]

again if they were a majority in the state then why did they have to take the extra-parlimentary moves to block debt courts from being set-up rather than just have the legislature pass debt amnesty laws?

[bushwacker]

The answer is simple. The legislature didn't want to do it, and the federal government (modern definition, confederal under the Articles) sure wouldn't allow it. Also there was the side-issue that the backwoods pioneers and farmers (some of them) wanted mommy government to kick out the natives so they could steal their land.