In recent years, Western societies have begun to reconsider and reevaluate the experiments in social-welfare provision that had seemed to hold such promise in the postwar era. This process was accelerated by the collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, a development which discredited socialism generally and left Western liberalism and free-market economic institutions as the most prominent remaining paradigm for the organization of modern societies. Today, trends toward freedom in international trade and toward the privatization of some of the functions previously performed by government may be taken as evidence of the increasing influence of market-oriented liberalism.

The essays in this volume assess the strength and impact of market liberal or libertarian political theory, which, broadly conceived, advocates a more carefully circumscribed role for the state and a greater reliance on the ability of individuals and voluntary, private-sector institutions to confront social problems. Some of the essays deal with crucial theoretical issues, asking whether the promotion of citizens' welfare can serve as the justification for the establishment of government, or inquiring into the nature of the constraints on individual behavior that exist in a liberal social order. Some essays explore market liberal or libertarian positions on specific public policy issues, such as affirmative action, ownership of the airwaves, the provision of healthcare, or the regulation of food and drugs. Other essays look at the nature and limits of property rights, the morality of profit-making, or the provision of public goods. Still others address the success or failure of libertarianism as a political movement, suggesting ways in which libertarians can reach out to those who do not share their views.