One of the scariest things about liberalism to me is it’s convenientness. Take abortion for example. At it’s root, it’s simply about justifying irreponsibility – albiet to a murderous extreme. For a less extreme example, look at evolution. Ultimately it’s not about scientific fact – because there is none. It’s about the absense of God, and consequentially, accountability. Look at socialism: Let someone else take care of my children’s education… or welfare… or health.
But let’s take a closer look at socialism. I don’t want to be extreme and say that it’s an evil system… all it is is a system, albeit a faulty one. I’m sure many who support socialism do so based on good intentions. But it’s always been a failure everywhere it’s been implemented, and it will certainly fail here in America. Why? Well, one reason is the worldview it’s founded on is broken. In fact, it’s inconsistent.
One fundamental aspect of socialism is based on the belief that everyone is equal and should be given every opportunity to succeed as anyone else. Well, that’s how they would describe it, but that’s actually a better description of capitolism. Socialism is the belief that everyone is not equal, but should be, and it’s up to the state to ensure equality. Why do I say this? Well, let’s look at the two examples of liberalism that I gave earlier: abortion and evolution. At the outset, let me say that I realize that not every socialist is pro-choice and an evolutionist, but really, most are. In fact, if they’re not, then they haven’t put much thought into their systems of belief and are just going along with what the media tells them… hmmmmm.
First, evolution. One aspect of evolution is randomness. Mankind was not created with a purpose… it just happened. Mankind is at the top of the food chain because of natural selection. Naturally, even within mankind itself there are degrees of evolution. This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t be equal (even with the animals), but it’s still true, none the less, and something should be done about it. So we rely on the state to ensure equality. Keep the stronger from becoming too strong by taking from them and giving to the weak. Isn’t this being compassionate? It would seem like it. Problem is, it’s unnatural… or non-evolutionary. Now you’re just playing God, and well, a sinful being trying to play God winds up looking like the devil… or Stalin… or Mao… or Pol Pot, etc. And really, this is what has ALWAYS happened with socialism – genocide.
Now abortion. Pro-choice advocats will tell you that their beliefs are based on the privacy and protection of the mother. They’re not pro abortion, per se. They’re for protecting the mother if she decides to be pro-abortion. The truth, Watson, is evolutionary. The unborn is weaker than the born. But isn’t socialism supposed to protect the weak? Ah ha! I knew you’d say that. So, life must not begin at conception. But when does it begin? Well, let’s not talk semantics…. No. Please. Lets. How about Life begins when it’s wanted? This is the socialist’s only option, because, well, then abortion would just be mass genocide…. oops. Hmmm, maybe we are already a socialist nation after all.
The truth is, socialism is a religion and government is their god. Rousseau grew up in a Christian home… in fact, he continued to attend church his whole life – mostly out of guilt. He understood that man was created equal and is intended to be so his whole life. I believe most socialist’s have this inherent belief. The problem is, they reject the only possible answer to the equality problem: Jesus Christ. The government’s job is to ensure that every man has an opportunity to succeed. The Church’s job is to ensure that everyman has the opportunity to be equal.
Brian…
Would you say that the government’s responsibility is not to ensure equality but to ensure equal opportunity? The hole in capitalism is that it assumes that everyone will do what benefits everyone. Captialism does not account for the sinful human heart which seeks its own to exclusion of others rather than seeking its own in the good of others. I think you are right about the socialism in particular but I’m wondering if you could clarify your statement about equality a little bit.
Hope you guys are well bro.
kb
Comment by Kyle Barrett — October 19, 2008 @ 12:38 pm
KB,
Hey man. I think that’s pretty much what I was saying – especially summed up in my last couple of sentences. Our founding fathers believed (obviously) that all men are created equal, and that gov’t should enforce laws, protect rights, etc… ensuring that every man has the opportunity to succeed. Certainly, even from the beginning, it hasn’t been perfect. In fact, John Adams said that “our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It’s wholly inadequate for the government of any other.” I tend to think that he was not assusming our nation was completely moral or religious, but rather we needed to strive for these qualities to make it work. Unfortunately, right off the bat, we were dealing with inequality.
Anyways, I could write another post on the failure of the church in America, thereby leaving a gaping hole for gov’t to step in and fill the void. My main point was that people have an inherent desire to be equal, but instead of turning to Christ they turn to gov’t.
Comment by brianmclain — October 20, 2008 @ 2:38 pm