Today I talk with Roderick about his 2013 blog post “Eudaimonism and Non-Aggression,” one of many early 2010s blog posts across the libertarian ecosystem debating the pros and cons of the non-aggression principle, or NAP. As usual, Roderick thinks both sides make some good points, but ultimately lands on the side of the NAP. Though in order to avoid the common pitfalls of the NAP, such as downgrading it to a mere rule of thumb or applying it in a reductionist manner, Roderick counsels libertarians to turn to Ancient Greek philosophers such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle in order to situate the NAP in the broader ethical outlook concerned with human flourishing known as eudaimonism. This was one of my first introductions to eudaimonism and still serves as a very useful entry point into these ancient ideas. I’ve sent this article to many libertarians looking for more robust and sophisticated ways of grounding libertarian ideas, and I hope you find my discussion with Roderick insightful.
Roderick T. Long (A.B. Harvard, 1985; Ph.D. Cornell, 1992) is professor of philosophy at Auburn University, president of the Molinari Institute and Molinari Society, editor of The Industrial Radical and Molinari Review, and co-editor of The Journal of Ayn Rand Studies. A founding member of the Alliance of the Libertarian Left and senior fellow at the Center for a Stateless Society, Long blogs at Austro-Athenian Empire and Bleeding Heart Libertarians.
Video version on YouTube:
Audio version:
