In liberal democracies, we are accustomed to a wide range and degree of freedom, limited only by the equally valid freedom of others. In other words, individuals are presumed to have the right to pursue their interests, whatever they may be, provided they do not wrongfully interfere with others doing the same.

The word “wrongfully” is crucial here. The five people ahead of me in the line for coffee in the morning are definitely interfering with my interests, but they are not acting wrongfully if they simply arrived there before I did. However, if someone arrives after me and cuts in front of me, that person is acting wrongfully, violating an important social norm, even if not a legal one. If I manage to procure my treasured beverage and then, upon leaving the coffee shop, someone attacks me and steals my coffee, that person has violated a clear legal norm, and I can marshal the powers of the state to my side to pursue justice. (My sole recourse to the person who cut in line is to express scorn and hope my fellow patrons do the same.)

Although we may resent those who have a negative impact on our lives, we should also recognize when they had every right to their actions. Each of us interacts with countless other people in myriad ways every day, inevitably leading to blameless conflict, due only to scarcity of time and space (and coffee shops). It is only when people violate social or legal norms, implying rights held by others, do those actions become wrongful—and it is only when actions are wrongful that we feel justified in addressing them in some way, whether by scorn (in the case of social norms) or state action (in the case of legal norms).

This idea applies not only to individual actions, but to those of businesses as well. Firms take many actions that affect individuals (and other firms) in positive and negative ways, but even the latter is not of concern to the state unless they violate recognized rights. Businesses can increase prices, stop producing certain products, or close locations, all of them possibly setting back the interests of individuals who enjoyed or relied on them.