Robert Nozick

"If the world were wholly just, there would be no need for coercive institutions."

"Self-ownership is fundamental to moral and political philosophy."

"Patterned principles of justice cannot be continuously maintained without continual interference."

"The minimal state respects the separateness of individuals while providing legitimate protection."

"Moral philosophy must begin with the recognition of individual rights as constraints."

"We are not resources for others to use as they see fit."

"Justice involves respecting the process through which holdings came about."

"Voluntary cooperation is the appropriate basis for legitimate social institutions."

"The redistributive state treats some citizens as means to the ends of others."

"Each of us has a life to lead and rights that protect our ability to lead it."

"Moral constraints emerge from recognizing the separateness of persons."

"One cannot justify a system of coercion merely by showing it produces good outcomes."

"The entitlement theory asks not just what distribution is best, but what process produces justice."

"Persons are not resources to be allocated by central authorities."

"Justice requires respecting how people's holdings have come to be."

"An individual's rights place constraints on what others may do to that person."

"Voluntary exchange respects the agency and separateness of both parties."

"Coercive redistribution fails to respect the moral agency of those coerced."

"The legitimacy of the state depends on whether it can justify its coercive force."

"Rights act as side constraints on the pursuit of social good."

"One cannot be obligated to serve the collective good against one's will."

"Moral philosophy must account for the fact that each person is an independent being."

"Justice is not determined by what produces the best overall outcome."

"The state exists to protect rights, not to engineer particular distributions."

"Each person has absolute sovereignty over their own life and labor."

"Patterned approaches to justice inevitably fail to preserve their patterns without continual coercion."

"Moral philosophy begins with respect for individual autonomy and self-determination."

"We cannot extract principles of justice from aggregate welfare considerations alone."

"Rights violations cannot be justified by reference to overall social benefits."

"The concept of self-ownership grounds all other moral and political principles."