Are property rights essential for a democracy to function?

[Vice President Christian Man]

I think so

[Antonio the Sixth]

Some property rights, sure. But there is a wide spectrum between the unfettered, absolute, unalienable property rights that ancaps presuppose and a completely propertyless society where the state can take anything from anyone on a whim. And ultimately, both ends of the spectrum are equally destructive to liberty and democracy.

[MarkD]

I'm inclined to say "no," and a large part of the reason why is that you're comparing apples to oranges. Democracy is a governmental process, whereas "rights" are a policy outcome of governmental decision making. It is not essential to have any particular policy outcomes in order to have a democracy. The only "right" that has to exist in order to have a democracy is the right to vote.

In the US, the democratic process created the Bill of Rights, and property rights are just one leaf in the overall head of lettuce that is the Bill of Rights.

[Ferguson97]

Property rights and democracy are both very good and important things, but you can have one without the other.

[OSR stands with Israel]

Yes and this is why communism is incompatible with Democracy even in theory.

[Ragnaroni]

Like it or not, property rights are one of the key pillars of Western civilization.

[Ferguson97]

Yes and this is why communism is incompatible with Democracy even in theory.

Could you elaborate?

[Filuwaúrdjan]

There's a relatively simple way of answering this question, and that is to ask whether a functional democracy has ever existed in peacetime without property rights? And the answer is a very clear 'no'.* However, there's a difference between 'property rights' and 'untrammeled property rights' and it is equally clear that a democracy can function perfectly well when property rights are subject to significant restriction, and may even function better if that is the case. So, as is often the way, it comes down to a matter of finding the right balance.

_{*Quite a few cases of democracies effectively abolishing property rights during wartime (including the United Kingdom during the Second World War), but then this applies to other rights as well and extreme circumstances can't be used to draw wider lessons.}

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Yes, with the understanding that all rights imply duties. What's unusual about American political philosophy on this point is the overemphasis on property rights, not the concept itself.

[Biden his time]

They aren't until a majority of people start wanting property rights

The goal of any modern communist should be to make it so that people don't want or don't care about property rights. Unfortunately it wouldn't matter since communism will also cause a society to fail or be eaten by a non-communist society in the long run.

[Blue3]

Like it or not, property rights are one of the key pillars of Western civilization.

Western civilization =/= democracy

[Ragnaroni]

Like it or not, property rights are one of the key pillars of Western civilization.

Western civilization =/= democracy

Oh I didn't mean just democracy, I meant more the capitalist system that made the West want to be more democratic.