I view libertarianism as a subset of classical liberalism, and on these following five points all or most classical liberals agree. First, libertarians recognize the existence and value of individual persons. Second, libertarians place value on the ability of all persons to live and pursue happiness. Third, libertarians use the phrase "pursuit of happiness" because they believe that only the protection of actions, rather than a guaranty of results, can potentially be afforded to everyone and that, in any event, no identifiable set of results would provide happiness for everyone. Fourth, libertarians recognize that people live in society with others and that the actions of one may have both positive and negative effects on others. Fifth, libertarians maintain that it is possible to find conditions, or ground rules, that would provide all, or nearly all, persons living in society the opportunity to pursue happiness without depriving others of the same opportunity.
(Randy E. Barnett, "The Moral Foundations of Modern Libertarianism," chap. 3 in Varieties of Conservatism in America, ed. Peter Berkowitz [Stanford, CA: Hoover Institution Press, 2004], 51-74, at 64)
Note from KBJ: There is nothing in this list of five points (with the possible exception of the third) that an egalitarian such as John Rawls or Ronald Dworkin need deny, in which case it fails to identify what is distinctive of libertarianism.
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 