Does a Land Value Ceiling make things more fair?

This post is old and not very enlightening. For a more recent discussion of the land value ceiling try: The land value ceiling: an explanation of how it works or A wealth ceiling would make the use of property more efficient (note added 10th March 2012).

How can the wealth of the land be distributed fairly?

Introducing a Land Value Ceiling (or Cap) would restrict people from owning more than a "fair share" of the natural resources of the land... If we agree that there is a sufficiency of land to sustain all of the population then there can be no justification in restricting an innocent individual from having access to a suitable portion of land. We "should" only give birth to a child if we have sufficient resources to sustain it(*).

We can only be free if we have enough land to provide sufficient food. Land is freedom.

So should every child be given a plot of land? Yes, if we are not to put ourselves above them in importance... but "should" there be a disincentive against producing many babies(*)? Perhaps, but even if there is, the disincentive should not be associated with the child itself but instead the adult(s) responsible. However, it is difficult to punish the parents without also affecting the child. Of course, people would (should) be free to voluntarily pay for other people not to have children... The ultimate sanction would be forced State sterilisation of the parents(*) but it would never come to that, for one thing the natural costs of giving birth and child-rearing would provide a disincentive.

A Land Value Ceiling, by definition would not differentiate between "virtuous" people who obtained their land rightfully and those who have benefited from aggressive behavior in the past.

Someone who does much good for those people around him or her would perhaps feel justified in wanting a greater share of the natural resources... which could then be passed on to children. So excess land could perhaps be sold (to the State) for extra breeding rights and therefore access to land.

So a woman can only give birth to a (final) third (or fourth depending on the decision of the State) child without being sterilised if she has a certificate establishing land rights, effectively money(*). On your "last" child you can pay not to be sterilised... Somewhat barbaric, perhaps better for the Mother to incur a debt (to the State) on giving birth to the "excess" child(*)? How can it be levied(*)? This encourages people to be poor...

We assume that everyone who needs to give up land property rights to the State via the LVC is virtuous, if someone else is less virtuous then that crime must be dealt with separately.

With a Land Value Ceiling it would be impossible to store wealth beyond an upper limit... even storing wealth in precious metals could be restricted if they are considered part of the Earth itself and in some sense, belonging to everyone. Certainly, if every country imposed an LVC precious metals would be deprived of their monetary properties in any case... Gold would remain of little value within any country with a Land Value Ceiling because property rights would remain the dominant currency.


Regarding children... the point is not to associate the child with the actions of the parent... we "should" not even seek to punish the parent for having extra children since to do so would suggest that She has gained above those who have not had children.

Some women will have more children than others... And as much as we might resent it(*), we must give up our land rights to the children because they are the next generation. Is there any justification to restrict someone's reproductive rights other than to avoid the problems of overpopulation and can those measures be shown to be lesser than the damage of extra children? Since this can never be shown it cannot be justified to remove (or restrict) reproductive rights, we can only make accommodation for the children when they arrive by sharing land and natural resources in the most fair way possible... come what may.

A Land Value Ceiling would enable the State to allocate resources fairly to make sure everyone has a reasonable chance in life... an appropriate share of freedom. It would enable a Society to regulate the disparities in ownership that arise through cronyism and Monopolies.

Tuesday 31 March 2009

Update: (*)No restrictions should be placed on the rights of a woman to have children... If more children are produced than the Earth can sustain, then we will see what happens.

Wednesday 29 April 2009