The Institution of Private Property

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The usual idea is that property means a physical object which the owner can use as he pleases. But with such an idea in mind we are not getting very far in the theoretical study of the matter. What is essential for property is the relationships between individuals that it creates. They pertain to the actions that an individual can take and the way the others have to relate to these actions. Property is a bundle of rights. I have the right to cut a ball into pieces, to inflate or deflate it, but I do not have the right to fill it with gas, set it on fire and throw it in my neighbour's backyard.

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