"A Lesson in Government and Government Compassion"

Sydney M. Williams

30 Bokum Road – Apartment 314

Essex, CT 06426

Thought of the Day

“A Lesson in Government and Government Compassion”

August 7, 2017

“Practically all government attempts to redistribute wealth and income

tend to smother production incentives and lead toward general impoverishment.”

                                                                                    Henry Hazlitt (1894-1993)

                                                                                    American journalist of economics and business

This is a primer, written as a reminder to myself as much as for readers. With our government grown large and complex, with demands placed on it that were never envisioned by the Founders, with its purpose enshrouded in a miasma of social demands and political correctness, and with its being used by those who enrich themselves at the expense of the needy, it seemed appropriate to recall its original intent, and to acknowledge that, from a perspective of government largesse, wealth must precede compassion.

Without government, anarchy would reign, chaos would ensue and the strongest would rule. So, government is necessary for man to survive, at least civilly. The question has always been – what form of government best serves man? Winston Churchill, a sometime satirical critic of democracy (“The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter”), nevertheless admitted it was the best form of government yet devised. Most would agree. Additionally (and concomitantly), we should remind ourselves that private economic growth is a necessary prelude to public compassion.

Most people are, and have been, ruled by authoritarians: royalty, military or civilian dictatorships, religious leaders, a cabal of strong men, or an oligarchy of the wealthy. Examples today would include North Korea, Syria, Iran, Uganda and Venezuela. China and Russia restrict the rights of their citizens. (Incidentally, the leaders of three of those countries – Russia, North Korea and Syria – show up on a list of the world’s richest political leaders.) The origins of these governments lie in the military like Uganda, religion like Iran, or socialism like Venezuela. China and Russia came to be despotic regimes by way of revolution against imperial powers. But, unlike ours, their revolutions devolved into even harsher regimes. The consequence for their peoples: the murder of millions of their citizens, deprivation of human rights, unequal opportunities, sustained poverty, and no desire to provide adequately for their people. While both have emerged from the worst of their self-inflicted atrocities, both have recently reverted to authoritarian ways.    

In democracies, where the fortunate among us live, the essential purpose of government is twofold: To keep its citizens safe against threats from home and abroad, and to assure that its citizens’ civil rights are not abrogated. Compassion in government, a common expectancy today, can only be achieved with sustained economic growth. President George W. Bush once said, “The major role of government is to create an environment where people take risks to expand the job rate in the United States.” A belief in, and encouragement of, free market capitalism is necessary to attain the things we today want government to do: to care for the indigent, the aged, the infirm, to provide healthcare for all, to educate our youth and to protect the environment. A nation may be rich in resources, as is ours, but without the rule of law and without a legal framework that allows people to own private property those resources may sit idle. One has only to look at nations like Venezuela, Argentina, Nigeria and Rwanda – poor countries with abundant resources. A successful nation needs a freely elected government, along with men and women who are entrepreneurial, aspirant, creative and willing to take risk, those who see opportunity and exploit it. Government should act as referee: assure fairness, protect the innocent, see that laws are upheld, and prevent the willful destruction of resources for short term gain. It should not be the arbiter of who becomes successful.

To accomplish this, a successful nation must make available a basic education, and it must strive to provide equal opportunities for all. As a country becomes powerful and wealthy, demands on its resources intensify. That is unsurprising. A free and independent nation, grown rich because of adherence to the principles of free-market capitalism, can afford to be compassionate. But it must be careful lest it slay the goose that lays the golden eggs. Without wealth created through private enterprise, compassion becomes empty promises – wind puddings with air sauce, as my mother-in-law used to say.

To achieve the goal of a representative republic and to avoid the tendency of man to accrue power, the Founders established a government in which leverage was diffused – a separation of control – a legislative branch to create laws, an executive branch to implement them, and a judicial branch to adjudicate them.

As we recall that history, we should not forget what the Founders did not promise: equality of outcomes, the promotion of gender studies, health care, the protection of our rivers and forests, etc. They had little idea of the of how big, rich and complex the United States would become. They had no inkling of labor-saving devices that would be forthcoming, from cars to washing machines to telephones. They realized that people are not all the same. They knew they were not creating Nirvana, but I like to think they would approve of the charity and humanity that are central to today’s citizens and government. However, I also like to think that they believed we should live within our means, and that we should not derail the engine of economic growth, which has brought so much good to so many.

There is a reason that immigrants seek our shores – we are a land of opportunity. We are a place where hard work and ability provide awards, where gains made legally cannot be confiscated, where the right to speak out, to protest, to practice one’s religion are not inhibited, where, if accused of a crime, a jury of one’s peers determine one’s guilt or innocence, where discrimination is not absent, but not so prevalent as in those countries where it is exercised by government. The people must ensure those principles are never reneged.

As well, as charitable people we should strive to do what we can to help those in need, regardless of what government does; though our government does and should play a role. But the promise of equal outcomes is nothing more than an empty campaign pledge – a promise that what is Sally’s will be given to Harry. Such policies do not recognize inherent differences in people: Some are stronger; others are smarter. Some have high aspirations; others are content to be followers. Some work hard; others prefer personal pursuits. Some shun the material world for that of art, music or dance. Some of the most talented are willing to forego high incomes, so that they may teach others, attend their medical needs, or do research. We are a nation of doctors, plumbers, lawyers, electricians, artists, stockbrokers, storekeepers, actors and accountants. A marvel of our communities is that society’s needs get filled without government edict.

What should government do? Simplify the tax code, eliminate prohibitive regulation, reduce dependency, encourage personal responsibility, celebrate the dignity of work and motivate entrepreneurs. Let economic growth reach its potential. Let the next generations enjoy the fruits of democracy and free-market capitalism, as have we. Keep in mind, civil rights and economic freedom are inextricably entwined.

Here endeth the lesson.

"Trump in Warsaw"

Sydney M. Williams

Thought of the Day

“Trump in Warsaw”

July 17, 2017

“Finally, on both sides of the Atlantic, our citizens are confronted with yet another danger – one firmly

 in our control. This danger is invisible to some but familiar to the Poles: the steady creep of government bureaucracy that drains vitality and wealth of the people. The West became great not because of paperwork

 and regulation, but because people were allowed to chase their dreams and pursue their destinies.”

                                                                                                            Donald Trump

                                                                                                            Krasinski Square, Warsaw

                                                                                                            July 6, 2017

Put aside, for a moment, the hysteria over the alleged collusion between team Trump and Russia and no matter one’s personal feeling toward the President, consider the importance of what was said in Warsaw.

Where else but in the West[1] have people and nations benefitted from the democratic concepts of self-rule, rule of law, the sanctity of private ownership, freedoms of movement, press, religion and speech? What else, other than free-market capitalism, has positively transformed people’s financial well-being, lifted them from poverty, improved their environment, and given them the means to help others? Where else have people been able to question their leaders without endangering themselves and their families?

Should we not, then, as Donald Trump suggested in his July 6^th speech, ensure we have the “will” to defend those ideals? Or should we, as Lawrence Summers suggested in a recent op-ed in The Financial Times, stay silent for fear of alienating “the vast majority of humanity that does not live in what the President considers to be the West”? It was liberty, and its defense, about which Mr. Trump spoke so eloquently. “Americans, Poles and the nations of Europe value individual freedom and sovereignty. We must work together to confront forces, whether they come from inside or out…”

Krasinski Square, the sight of the failed Warsaw uprising against the Nazis in 1944 was the right venue for Mr. Trump to speak about the rarity and fragility of democracy, of how difficult it is to gain and how easily it can be lost. He talked of outsiders who wish to do us harm and of insiders, professing to do good but in truth seeking power. Poland was brutalized by the Nazis for five years, and then occupied for another forty-five years by Soviet Communists who shut down opposition and killed dissenters. It has been 242 years since we had to fight for our rights. Poles have had to do so for most of my lifetime. They understand what tyranny, no matter its origin, can do to the human spirit and to civilized society.

Over the past decade, the world has become more unstable, and more dangerous. Russia has reasserted herself from the Ukraine to the Baltic. China has threatened trade routes through the South China Sea. Conflicts between Sunnis and Shiites, along with the expansion of myriad Islamic extremist groups from Pakistan to Egypt, have destabilized further an already unstable Middle East, and unleashed a wave of refugees into Europe. Syria’s civil war has caused the death of 12% of its population and displaced another 50%. With its arsenal of nuclear weapons and its desire to produce a stable of intercontinental ballistic missiles, North Korea threatens nations from Asia to the United States. This has happened within the context of a slow-growth global economy where lax immigration rules have allowed in terrorists, and where migrants perform cheap labor for industrial countries like Germany. It is a world in which excess regulation has hampered economic growth, and in which technological changes challenge traditional businesses, affecting everything from retail and communications, to banking and energy. And making things even sketchier has been the threat of cyber-attacks and the proliferation of social media. Mark Zuckerberg’s influence on our culture risks becoming more powerful than our Christian-Judeo heritage. 

When not beating him up on charges of “colluding” with the Russians, mainstream media claims Mr. Trump’s policies augur a withdrawing into a nativist fortress, pulling up the drawbridge and waiting out the storm. But that’s not what I read in his Warsaw speech: “Defense is not just a commitment of money, it is a commitment of will…The fundamental question of our time is whether the West has the will to survive. Do we have the confidence in our values to defend them at any cost? Do we have the desire and the courage to preserve our civilization in the face of those who subvert and destroy it?”  He spoke of the need for a strong defense: “A strong Poland is a blessing to the nations of Europe, and they know that. A strong Europe is a blessing to the West and the world.” “There is nothing,” he added, “like our community of nations.” These are not the words of an isolationist, or of a man who would choose to act unilaterally. These are the words of a realist, a world leader who challenges his fellow Western leaders to not falter in the face of those who would harm us. It was a speech of hope to people who understand tyranny and know repression.

It wasn’t just the threat of Islamic terrorism that Mr. Trump addressed in Poland, it was also the insidious growth of government agencies and bureaucracies, something denied by its progenitors, today’s progressive Western leaders. The danger is the one quoted in the rubric at the head of this essay: “…the steady creep of government bureaucracy that drains the vitality and the wealth of the people.”  These forces, Mr. Trump said, “…threaten over time to undermine these values and to erase the bonds of culture, faith and tradition that make us who we are. If left unchecked, these forces will undermine our courage, sap our spirit, and weaken our will to defend ourselves and our societies.” Mr. Trump’s concern is not unlike the one H.G. Wells expressed of in his 1895 novel The Time Machine, where he wrote of the Eloi – a people weakened by a government that provides cradle-to-grave care and who were subsequently terrorized by Morlocks. Mr. Trump quoted the Polish martyr Bishop Michael Kozal who was killed at Dachau in 1943: “More horrifying than a defeat of arms is a collapse of the human spirit.” The President’s message would have reverberated through classrooms, if students were studying history and classics, instead of politically-correct, designer courses meant to promote self-esteem.

Within this fast-changing world, many in the West seem heedless of the hurricane bearing down. Instead of addressing real concerns in Hamburg, leaders chose to issue toothless communiques designed to make them feel good. Style, to these smug bureaucrats, is more important than substance. Today’s Western leaders and bureaucrats are eerily reminiscent of the “sleepwalkers” who led Europe to catastrophe in 1914.  They remind one of Russian aristocrats, nonchalant in their obliviousness and comfortable in their servant-infested parlors, in early 1917, unconcerned about revolutionaries amassed outside their palaces. The world is changing, and they sit snug in their complacency.

It was for these reasons that Mr. Trump’s speech in Warsaw’s Krasinski Square was so needed and so important. It was a celebration of Western values, which have been side-lined, but which have brought individual liberty. It highlighted the demarcation between a subversive state, which may appear “caring” but that promotes dependency, versus one in which a free people make choices, to rise or fall based on merit, which, at times, may seem heartless, but which guarantees the liberties embedded in our Bill of Rights. A “caring” state promises the comforts portrayed in the “Life of Julia,” or offers the God-like attitudes of the British state toward little Charlie Gard. But the risks of such bureaucratic growth is the subtlety in which it endangers personal liberty. We don’t want anarchy, but we don’t want to be suffocated. We want the freedoms guaranteed us. To paraphrase William Buckley, it is, after all, the self-righteous elite who are more dangerous to freedom than a nation’s masses.

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[1] The West, in this context, should be considered Europe, the English-speaking countries and Japan.