Good use of property (Berry)

May 17th, 2008  |  Published in Agrarianism, Economics, Quotes  |  2 Comments

Good use of property … seems to require not only ownership but personal occupation and use by the owner. That is to say that the good use of property requires the widest possible distribution of ownership.

—Wendell Berry, “Property, Patriotism, and National Defense” in Home Economics (1986), p. 106.

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  1. Eric Brown says:

    May 17th, 2008 at 12:33 pm (#)

    Thanks for sharing this one, Josh! I collect Berry quotes, and this one will be sure to join the collection now that you’ve shined a light on it.

    This quote is particularly striking after my commenting yesterday on investing in the stock market, which is to say the complete opposite of personal occupation and use by the owner, don’t you think?

  2. Josh Sowin says:

    May 17th, 2008 at 2:02 pm (#)

    I don’t know if it’s the opposite, but it’s a different perspective. I can appreciate Berry’s perspective here even if I don’t always agree.

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