Jefferson and Locke

As I said in my other blog about John Locke's second treatise, there is a line in the declaration of independance that is extremely similar to what John Locke said. The line is "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness", which Locke argues that every man has but instead of happiness Locke says property. The ideas though are identical and even the idea that every man has these rights from birth and such are identical. I think Jefferson got the idea from Locke, and thought ti was grreat and put it in the Declaration, but to avoid plagrism put happiness instead of property.

The Second Treatise And America

John Locke says that all men have natural rights to life, liberty, and property. He also says that when people enter a society they agree to follow a social contract that poeple agree to choose and obey the governing body. When Locke decribes the social contract though he says that when a person joins a society, they give up some of the freedoms granted to them by nature.
In America, where Locke's theory is taught to everyone from elimentary to college students, we pride ourselves of being the "land of the free". In our own constitution it says that we have the right of "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Jefferson got this idea from Locke, but yet America has a society, and when we enter that society, either from being born and raised here or imigrating here, people agree to America's social contract. But by Locke's definition as said earlier, people give up some freedoms and liberties when they enter a society. So how is it that America is the "land of the free" and where we have a right to liberty, yet when we enter America's society we give freedoms and liberties up...