----------------- HES POSTING ----------------- If the whole of Book V of the Wealth of Nations seems a bit daunting, the following passage on the role of the government in ensuring public health should provide some incentive: "Even though the martial spirit of the people were of no use towards the defence of the society, yet to prevent that sort of mental mutilation, deformity, and wretchedness, which cowardice necessarily involves in it, from spreading themselves through the great body of the people, would still deserve the most serious attention of government, in the same manner as it would deserve its most serious attention to prevent a leprosy or any other loathsome and offensive disease, though neither mortal nor dangerous, from spreading itself among them, though perhaps no other public good might result from such attention besides the prevention of so great a public evil." (WN V.i.f.60, p. 787-88.) Eric Schliesser Department of Philosophy University of Chicago ------------ FOOTER TO HES POSTING ------------ For information, send the message "info HES" to [log in to unmask]