About private property

The concept of private property is one of the basements of human civilizations. Humans tend to care for the things they own, and to not care for things owned by somebody else.

something (“to invest into it”), we must give them a right to govern this something.

Basic concepts

We generally accept the idea that humans can own certain resources. This resource (the owned thing) can be as small as a pencil or as big as a piece of land.

The owner of a resource is the sole responsible for governing it. He has the right of deciding whether and how to make it available to others. He invests care and energy to develop the resource, to repair it when needed, to maintain it and share it efficiently. The owner has even the right to destroy the resource.

We cannot expect them to make efforts unless they get some reward.

resource

Something useful. Something that can be used by humans and which needs work, care and energy to be discovered, developed, maintained and used efficiently.

property

A resource that is owned by somebody.

ownership

The fact of having been given the right to govern a resource, which includes managing its usage.

private property

Ownership of property by non-governmental legal entities.

Article 17 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights confirms this when it says that “everyone has the right to own property”.

Owning something does not only mean the right of using it but also the responsibility of using it in a way that does not hurt others.

Types of resources

Mobile or immobile goods are the most obvious forms of resources.

Money is the most flexible resource.

Territories and areas of the Earth are a particular form of resource.

The name and reputation of a human are a form of resource because they represent a value. Honour. Trustworthiness.

Trademarks and names of companies and organisations are similar in nature to the name and reputation of a physical person. They are the result of business activity. As such they are a particular form of resource.

And then we invented the concept of intellectual property, the most sophisticated form of a resource.

Shared ownership

Article 17 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adds “alone as well as in association with others”. And article 23 (4) gets more concrete when it says “Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.” A “trade union” is what I call a private corporation.

Yes, humans can collaborate. This is another great thing with us. We can create corporations (“unions”), which enable us to achieve things that need more than one human life to get done.

The right to own is inferior to the right to survive

Thomas Aquinas introduced the following classification of resources (via fellowdyinginmate):

1. Resources needed to survive (both individuals and their families).

2. Resources required to fulfill social responsibilities, these being:

   • Education and support of the family.

   • Maintaining employment.

   • Helping your children in general.

   • Paying debts.

3. Surplus resources (superflua), remaining after situations (1) and (2) are met.

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/messyinspirations/2020/11/dont-be-confused-about-catholic-teaching/