Frederic Bastiat could have easily been a fellow traveler of the signers of our Declaration of Independence. The signers' vision of liberty and the proper role of government was captured in the immortal words: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain Unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among Men....” Bastiat echoes the identical vision, saying, “Life, faculties, production – in other words individuality, liberty, property – that is man. And in spite of the cunning of artful political leaders, these three gifts from God precede all human legislation, and are superior to it.” Bastiat gave the same rationale for government as did our Founders, saying, “Life, liberty and property do not exist because men have made laws. On the contrary, it is the fact that life, liberty and property existed beforehand that caused men to make laws in the first place.” No finer statements of natural or God-given rights have been made than those found in our Declaration of Independence and The Law. https://fee.org/articles/walter-williams-on-bastiat/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_E._Williams http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/