But the life that no longer trust another human being and no longer forms ties to the political community is not a human life any longer.

One thing that I don't like about some human rights approaches is that they rest on the notion of negative liberties. Some people take it that rights they have secured from the state means the state has to keep its hands off (on that issue).

[The capability theory avoids such pitfalls because it insists that quality of life must take into account such incommensurable factors as access to education, quality of personal relationships, political freedom, etc.] The right question to ask seemed to us to be: what are people actually able to do and to be? ... And we look at capabilities rather than actual functioning because we think it's the opportunities that are important. People should be free to choose which ones to use.

Radical Evil in the Lockean State: The Neglect of Political Emotions.

The organization man is dead. He thrived when smokestack America thrived. When airlines, banks and telephones were highly regulated. When Japan built shoddy cars. When computers were huge and an apple was something you ate.

Once you laugh with a person? That person is your friend.