--- In LibertarianEnterprise@yahoogroups.com, Curt Howland <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > This reminds me of the talk on anarchy by Roderick Long, > where he mentions that "objectivists" seem to be very worried about > people "dying without heirs" >
The libertarian viewpoint ought to be pretty clear: It is Morally Wrong to Initiate Force against any person. But what is a Person? Well, some would include Molluscan Aliens, some would include only Humans, some try to get away with Whales, etc. But what everyone seems to agree on is that NAP applies only to LIVING ORGANISMS. A dead body is not a Person. Therefore an "estate" is UNOWNED. Certainly a Person can give away what he owns to another Person; in that case what he gave away is now the Property of that Person. But if he dies Intestate, then he is no longer a Person, he no longer owns the Property, and he no longer has any desires, so nothing that is done with that Property can be considered Initiation Of Force against any Person. Go grab it.
