On liberty.

I know about your favorite axiom, and I usually notice when something violates it. I get that you are really really convinced by it, more so than of anything ever. But listen: I’ve heard that argument and I’m not moved. I have anticipated your response and rejected it. Liberty is a fine heuristic, but efficiency is more what I want, so I’m willing to consider sometimes violating your liberty axiom. Like you I am wary of big government, but because of bad consequences that often follow, not a liberty axiom violation.

My liberty axiom is something like this. All else equal, choose liberty, but when there are large advantages to liberty violation it is sometimes worth violation. It depends on how costly the liberty violation and how large the advantage of doing so, and what sort of possible damning precedent it sets. Context and implications matter. Bad consequences is a complicated idea.

However, efficiency is an equally conditional heuristic. I’ve heard that argument and I’m not moved. It's an over simplification.