“Liberty is not a right but a duty.”

Ah, the battle cry of most despotic governments; however, in the United States "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness". Liberty is a right, but it's individual application within society is a daily fight.

Liberty is a right and a duty.

Agree Mike.

Liberty is neither a right nor a duty. It is a responsability. It is our duty to our children to maintain it. And when secured it is our right to enjoy its fruits.

Oh, I can be a little forgiving on the semantics. There is no Liberty without the responsibility of defending it. It is a duty in that it is my duty to preserve Liberty not a duty imposed by some authority or official. Of course Liberty is a right -- I think Ezra Pound is just trying to impress upon us that Liberty requires an effort -- all our rights do, and if we stop defending them or leave the duty of defending them to someone else, we will not keep it.

Well said, E Archer. There will always be those who consider another person's rights quite alienable, regardless of the source of those rights

Please, the quote just means that to keep liberty you have to work at it every day. If you take it for granted there will be some one, in power, that thinks he granted it and can then take it away.