Paper Summary:

This paper explains that, although John Locke is best known today as a philosopher whose thinking and writing had, and continues to have, an enormous impact on democratic institutions, he also was an Oxford University scholar, a medical researcher and physician, a political operative, an economist, and an ideologue. The author points out that Locke's writings did not always carry the weight that they do today; but today, Locke's writings are used by a diverse assortment of organizations, including the National Rifle Association, to bolster or justify their positions. The paper relates that Locke had a marvelous way of putting the human condition into simple yet profound terms; for example, one of his famous quotes is "A sound mind in a sound body is a short but full description of a happy state in this world."

From the Paper:

"Locke had seen what happened to society when the powers of the church and of the government were combined: "...churches frequently used the force of the state to promote and enforce their interests and doctrines." This combination of church and state "caused horrendous atrocities against Jews and heretics, as well as the European religious wars between Catholics and Protestants" in the 16th and 17th Centuries, which resulted in millions of deaths. In his writings - which later influenced Jefferson and Madison to add "the right of religious freedom" into the Bill of Rights to the Constitution - Locke agreed that force was sometimes necessary when the state needed to punish a person for violating "any other man's rights.""

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