Paternalism

Paternalism is action that limits a person's or group's liberty or autonomy and is intended to promote their own good.

We are not speaking of children, or of young persons below the age which the law may fix as that of manhood or womanhood.

Because the person does not know the bridge is damaged and there is no time to warn him, seizing him and turning him back is not an infringement on his liberty.

According to soft paternalism, one would be justified in forcing him to not cross the bridge so one could find out whether he knows about the damage.

Impure paternalism occurs when the class of people whose liberty or autonomy is violated by some measure is wider than the group of persons thereby protected.

[7] In his Two Treatises of Government, John Locke argues (against Robert Filmer) that political and paternal power are not the same.

In On Liberty, he writes: [T]he only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others.

For the same reason, we may leave out of consideration those backward states of society in which the race itself may be considered as in its nonage.

The early difficulties in the way of spontaneous progress are so great, that there is seldom any choice of means for overcoming them; and a ruler full of the spirit of improvement is warranted in the use of any expedients that will attain an end, perhaps otherwise unattainable.