Quote:
Cohen used the classic negative liberty definition of freedom as "lack of interference from others", as he stated in the quote.
No he doesn't, because he doesn't even demonstrate an understanding of the concept. Property rights extend from self ownership or the "lack of interference from others". Once you recognize that the boat is mine because I cut down the trees, carved out the trunks, sealed, built a sail and made sure it was sea worthy his argument falls apart. You cannot attack the libertarian position this way because they view the boat as being a part of the person who built it. It is a store of his labor and that is the reason you are interfering with my freedom when you take it, but I am no interfering with yours by not allowing you to. But because he ignores the way libertarian theory builds property rights from self ownership he misses the mark by a mile.