Individual liberty and the common good
A society built to man’s measure will not be just one that serves him but one that gives him the opportunity to serve . . . the opportunity to do something for himself and others . . . the fulfillment that comes with the exercise of his talents.
We all breathe the same air and drink from the same aquifer. We don’t have to search for common ground; we live on it.
A few days ago I returned from Tullahoma, Tennessee, where my wife and I spent Thanksgiving with my mom. It was an exceptional visit. We went to my sister’s home for a sumptuous Thanksgiving dinner, toured the Jack Daniels Distillery and the quaint little village of Lynchburg, and taught Mom how to use the MailStation (a small device used only to send and receive e-mail) that we’d bought for her. We also watched a lot of CNN. And as we did, I was reminded of my liberal roots as Mom pulled for Al Gore and was dismayed when the vice president didn’t gain the votes he needed to win in Florida by the 5:00 p.m. Sunday deadline.
Some who read my essays have referred to me as a liberal, and given my upbringing, that’s a fair enough assessment. Nonetheless, I don’t label myself this way. I admit that a number of stands I take could be considered liberal or progressive (support for universal health care and a social safety net for those who need it, opposition to the death penalty) but others could be characterized as conservative or libertarian (smaller and more efficient government, school vouchers, strong personal values, and accountability).
The collective welfare versus the rights of the individual. Are these mutually exclusive? Or are both essential to a life well-lived? Personally, I truly believe in individual responsibility and individual rights. I believe that each of us is accountable for creating his or her life and that we should have the freedom to do this however we choose as long as we do not tread on another’s rights. I do not believe that any individual, organization, or government owes me anything. The way I shape my life is up to me. On the other hand, I possess within me a deep desire to support my fellow human beings—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I want to share what I have, what I know, and what I feel.
I believe that those who are without food or shelter or warm clothing have a responsibility for changing their situation if that is what they want to do. As contradictory as it may sound, I also believe that I truly am my brother’s keeper, that those in need call out the best and most generous in me. And I don’t care how folks who are hungry get fed, as long as they are fed and that it’s done in a way that respects their human dignity. Whether it’s money directly out of my pocket, contributions from the church I support, donations from nonprofit organizations, or food stamps from the government is of no real importance to me. However, as long as I’m required to pay taxes at the rate I’m paying them, I’d strongly prefer that some of my money be allocated to those who are hungry, to those in need.
“I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” That’s how Jesus said it. In the words of physicist Mae-Wan Ho:
Think of each organism as an entity that is not really confined within the solid body we see. The visible body just happens to be where the wave function of the organism is most dense. Invisible quantum waves are spreading out from each one of us and permeating into all other organisms. At the same time, each of us has the waves of every other organism entangled within our own makeup.
In a very real sense, no person is alone, no man is an island. We are not isolated atoms each jostling and competing against the rest in a Darwinian struggle for survival of the fittest. Instead each of us is supported and constituted, ultimately, by all there is in the universe. We are at home in the universe. In this entangled universe we cannot do violence to our fellow human beings or our fellow inhabitants of the Earth without doing violence to ourselves. And the most effective way to benefit oneself may to benefit others.
Regardless of the rhetoric we’re hearing right now, I believe that our nation is strongest when progressives, liberals, moderates, libertarians, and conservatives listen to one another and work together to create a nation in which our common welfare and our individual liberties are ensured. To paraphrase Thomas Jefferson, we are all Republicans, we are all Democrats. In times like these, I think it’s important to remember that.
Saturday, December 2nd, 2000No Comments »
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