Emerging Markets

Abstract

Liberalism is often criticized because it is said that it is concerned only by economic problems (and not more general human problems) and because it is in favor of selfishness. This is wrong and, in fact, liberalism is, on the contrary, the necessary consequence of a universal and valid conception of ethics. The foundation of liberalism consists in the fact that everyone must be respectful of the legitimate rights of any person (as regards, for instance, his body, his mind, and his legitimate property rights). Therefore, it implies that one ought to be respectful of another person either if this person is generous or if he is selfish (one is not obliged to be selfish, but one has the right to be selfish). Thus, liberalism is founded on the fundamental universal ethics and it is respectful of the individual conceptions of personal ethics. It is not in favor of selfishness, but in favor of individualism.