Justification and Limits of State Coercion in Liberal Democracies: Reconciling Binding Welfare State Policies and a Reformed Classical Liberalism

CHARLES UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES Institute of Political Studies Department of Political Science Peter Wedekind Justification and Limits of State Coercion in Liberal Democracies: Reconciling Binding Welfare State Policies and a Reformed Classical Liberalism Dissertation Thesis Abstract - English Prague 2022 Abstract In this thesis I defend the claim that classical liberalism has the capacity to justify meritocratic state policies that promote greater equality of opportunity. Correspondingly, I adopt an approach uncommon among scholars following the tradition of classical liberalism, given that I conclude with a position that is more frequently associated with the postulates of social welfare egalitarians, such as publicly funded higher education. This strategy serves as a reply to contemporary critiques of liberal democracies and implies that liberalism is endowed with the tools to address the flaws its own (neoliberal) manifestation has brought about. Skyrocketing socio-economic inequalities as well as the marketization trend which, among other things, crowds-out the traditional values of higher education and corrupts a public institution crucial for social mobility into a privilege of plutocratic elites, are just two examples. To support this argument, I discuss several consecutive claims:..