What is property? Why must all societies inevitably address themselves to the question of how to deal with property? What is the optimal way in which to allocate titles to property? Here, I clear the air about my position on the question. If this doesn't persuade you, at least it will tell you where I stand. I explain why all societies need some scheme of property rights to function; why the libertarian scheme of self-ownership, conferral of rights to unowned property to those who are the first to physically transform some scarce resource in an intersubjectively ascertainable way, and rights of contractual transfer of property to all owners is the optimal system from the point of view of maintaining social order and economic productivity; and why all deviations from that system are bound to produce, to one degree or another, a tendency to short-termism, imprudence and socio-cultural degeneracy. I also deal with some practical problems regarding "collective" ownership of property. REFERENCES: 1a. "A Theory of Socialism and Capitalism", by Hans-Hermann Hoppe: http://amzn.to/2CXZrST 1b. Free pdf version: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=5&ved=0ahUKEwjVyIzgxuPTAhWZ3oMKHWKuC0sQFgg-MAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fmises.org%2Ffiles%2Ftheory-socialism-and-capitalismpdf%2Fdownload%3Ftoken%3Di84ph3rd&usg=AFQjCNHrsf3WExeVc05L0MJEto5JNsC_UQ&sig2=t_cW48RobyjNhs9arZKZwA&cad=rja 2a. "The Economics and Ethics of Private Property", by Hans-Hermann Hoppe: http://amzn.to/2CM4fr0 2b. Free pdf version: https://mises.org/library/economics-and-ethics-private-property-0 3. "Democracy - The God That Failed: The Economics and Politics of Monarchy, Democracy and Natural Order", by Hans-Hermann Hoppe: http://amzn.to/2FjJvsm 4. "A Libertarian Theory of Contract: Title Transfer, Binding Promises and Inalienability", by Stephan Kinsella: https://mises.org/library/libertarian-theory-contract-title-transfer-binding-promises-inalienability-0 5a. "Law, Property Rights and Air Pollution", by Murray Rothbard: https://mises.org/library/law-property-rights-and-air-pollution 5b. pdf version: https://mises.org/library/law-property-rights-and-air-pollution-0 ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T50L2B502A

In this video, I make a long digression on the history of the debate in Western philosophy and Christian theology over free will. I especially discuss the concept of the will in Greek thought, and then how the modern and premodern concepts of the will, and consequently, of "negative" and "positive" political freedom, differ. Then, at last, I discuss the debate between Luther and Erasmus on the freedom or bondage of the will, and how this debate was emblematic of the conflict between humanism and Protestantism that arose as a result of each worldview's differing emphasis on man and God respectively, and the relationship between man and God. Because of this irreconcilable conflict, and the inadequacy of each position's attempt to cope with the problems raised by nominalism, a third solution was needed. This third solution became scientific naturalism, and with its emergence, we see the true birth of the modern age. Books/essays discussed or mentioned: 1. Michael Allen Gillespie's "The Theological Origins of Modernity": http://amzn.to/2AKBxVN 2. "Erasmus and Luther: the Battle Over Free Will," by Desiderius Erasmus and Martin Luther: http://amzn.to/2DeLH43 3. Augustine's "Against the Academicians" and "The Teacher": http://amzn.to/2mcl5Zi 4. Augustine's "On the Free Choice of the Will": http://amzn.to/2DfBrs7 5. "Elbow Room," by Daniel Dennett (this is a newer edition of the book than the one that I showed in the video): http://amzn.to/2meWJy1 6. Peter van Inwagen's "An Essay on Free Will": http://amzn.to/2AKyjll 7. Isaiah Berlin's "Liberty: Incorporating Four Essays on Liberty": http://amzn.to/2FjDUlQ 8. "Two Concepts of Liberty," by Isaiah Berlin (PDF): http://spot.colorado.edu/~pasnau/seminar/berlin.pdf ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4wzQmeP4r8