Paternalism and Charity in a Free Society; E. Heller

Esler G. Heller Paternalism and Charity in a Free Society A GREAT TRUTH is very simple; a great error is being perpetuated be hind a facade of complexity. The great truth is that only a limited government free society would pro vide the framework and atmosphere in which human beings (free from arbitrary compulsion in all creative aspects of life) could achieve their greatest spiritual and material growth with the least opportunity for mischief. The great error is in thinking that to achieve peace, prosperity, and justice, the interdependence, high technology, and infinite complexity of our society require that its guid ance and control be vested in a technocratic state of great power·and matching complexity. In spite of its size, complexity and pretensions of equalitarianism, the Esler Heller is manager of the New Egypt Auction and Farmers Market in New Jersey and a member of the New Jersey State Society of Auctioneers.

authoritarian state is unable and unwilling to deal effectively with in dividual inequalities. Therefore it divides its subjects into special groups and attempts by legislative compulsion to satisfy the ttrights" (read demands) of each group at the expense of all others (excepting of course the state and its cohorts). Thus it tramples on the basic principle of freedom: that when tl}e true rights of individuals are protected, the rights of all groups are protected. Government favors to one group must be at the expense of others. The effect is to pit group against group, establishing fairly rigid classes in what was to have been a classless and mobile society. A cherished myth of statism paints the free society as wonderful for ca pable' ambitious, self-reliant, self sufficient, and wealthy persons, but unacceptably harsh toward those of lower levels of ability, motivation, 485 486 THE FREEMAN August and resources. The proffered solu tion is the welfare state. The welfare state may impose a degree of ma terial equality, spiritual atrophy, suppressed rage, and destruction of self-respect among the governed.

However, the real inequality of ma terial benefits and power enjoyed by the elite upper echelons of the estab lishment contrasted with the hard ships and impotence of the rest of the people is an ever-widening chasm. l Those who have faith in freedom believe that within the limited-gov ernment and free society all eco nomic and psychic factors are auto matically integrated in the most harmonious arrangements possible for the essentially -good, but none theless flawed, nature of man. The free society tends to develop virtue and discourage vice, using no com pulsion except to restrain the initi ation of violence and fraud. History confirms this faith. Periods of greater freedom have invariably coincided with more peace, justice, and pros perity. Vital Differences The welfare state establishes a certain inescapable level of depen dence and servitude for both ruled and rulers. The free society embod ies a free market which offers what ever degree of independence or delSee George Feifer, "Russian Disorders,"

Harpers (February, 1981), pp. 41-45. pendence, self-sufficiency or pater nalism, solitary effort or cooperation each unique individual finds most compatible with his estate (age, health, wealth, education, personal ity, tastes, and character). The free market most efficiently allocates not only material goods, but also psy chic, spiritual and emotional values as well. Each member of a free soci ety has the maximum opportunity to choose that degree of indepen dence or subservience, responsibil ity or submission to authority that best suits him at any given time, and to change this voluntary ar rangement as he and his needs change. Persons, groups, business and re ligious organizations eager to fill the role of friend, helper, healer, ad visor, consultant, teacher, guardian, insurer, employer, master or guru exist today, and more would spring up as government restraints were removed. Their existence and growth in spite of the pre-emption of re sources and assumption of responsi bility by statist governments, and in spite of the social unrest and resent ment generated by government usurpations, is strong proof of man's instinct for freedom. It also reflects a natural rebelliousness to govern ment interference.

In a free society, those in need of help would not have to seek out and importune their prospective cCbene factors." Each needs the other, and 1981 PATERNALISM AND CHARITY IN A FREE SOCIETY 487 from motives of material and psy chic profit there would be a mutual search-a competition for clients and services just as producers and buy ers of goods in a free market com pete to cooperate most advanta geously with each other. The same applies to charity. It is also an ex change transaction between willing parties in mutual anticipation of finely interwoven psychic and ma terial benefits. Mutual Responsibility Without the coercive power of the state to establish or support welfare monopolies, doers of good works must court and gain the consent of their prospective wards, clients, congre gations, pupils, and the like. The re cipients of charitable acts and gifts must also act to make the exchange attractive-that is, acceptable to the giver. This imposes a degree of re sponsibili ty and therefore an oppor tunity to retain self-respect which tends to be lacking where govern ment favors such as guaranteed in come, housing, education, and med ical care are treated as ((rights" to be claimed,. but not necessarily de served.

The Hebrew prophets and Jesus teach us to do charity willingly, cheerfully, and preferably, anony mously. How, except in a free soci ety' is this possible? Under statism the establishment does its goodworks with other people's money. It regards redistribution, not even as charity, but as a necessary evil-a prophylactic measure to keep the masses dependent and pacified. The poor recognize the dole for what it is, and are demoralized. Those of a cynical nature push their demands to the utmost. The vicious and au dacious see it as confirmation of their self-pity and justification for rob bery, theft, rioting, and looting. This malaise is compounded by the nature of ((welfare" laws and so cial (~achievements" such as restric. tive child labor, minimum wage, and organized labor laws which keep the poor in enforced idleness. Simulta neously the wealthy and tax-pro ducing member·s of society are de prived of the opportunity, the incentive, but most of all, the means to perform charity. State-enforced redistribution, far from being char ity, is recognized by bothexpropri ated and recipients alike as injustice institutionalized.

Private charity is very much alive in the United States, and growing to compensate for government failures and government-created hardships. The sacrifice and generosity of mil lions of persons supporting the pan oply of recognized voluntary orga nizations and informal ad hoc groups, together with innumerable daily in stances of person-to-person help, is preserving our sense of mQral re sponsibility to aid one another. The total amount of private charity is 488 THE FREEMAN vast, and cannot be measured in dol lars alone. It is efficient and hu mane, and characteristically Amer ican. It puts the lie to ((liberal" assertions that, without govern ment redistribution, suffering and privation would sweep the land. Careful observation reveals misgov ernment as the principal cause of the hardship that redistribution purports to relieve. It confirms lib ertarians in their faith that had peo ple the freedom to control·the fruits of their own labors, philanthropy and charity would flourish as never be fore.

How to Proceed All discussions of the free society eventually lead to the problem of how to get from here to there. Sadly, there is no ufreedom button" to press which will instantly remove ((all man-concocted restraints against the release of creative energy" together with the cumulative effects of past restraints. While we cannot learn to swim without water, neither should we push the non-swimmer into a raging torrent. Many persons, through little or no fault of their own, are now largely dependent on government dole. It would be an in justice to punish them for the sin of those who encouraged or permitted the government and the establish ment to manipulate them into this dependency. To suddenly impose severe hardship on these unfortunate persons would not advance the cause of free dom. The most recent Libertarian Party presidential candidate, Ed Clark, has said that welfare should be among the last governmental in stitutions to be dismantled in the move to freedom. Only when the public is prepared to follow leaders truly committed to freedom, who will irrevocably renounce man's ages-long dalliance with authoritarianism, can freedom be approached. At that point a phased withdrawal ((with all de liberate speed" from compulsory schemes of redistribution would be possible.

The free society, far from lacking compassion toward persons with physical, mental, moral, social, or economic handicaps, will prove to be both just and compassionate, not only to the disadvantaged, but to all per sons and groups. It permits those who can fulfill their own responsi bilities and still have human or ma terial resources left for philanthro py, those who would be teachers, helpers, defenders, leaders, to make a myriad of voluntary arrangements with their fellows for mutual better ment and satisfaction. Compulsion can only teach compulsion, but vol untary good works are an encour aging and uplifting example. Ab sence of compulsion is essential to civilized progress, and is the essence of the free market, true charity, and liberty. @ ClarenceB. Carson Missing Chapters from American History IT has fallen to my lot over the past two decades to examine and write reviews of a goodly number of text books. Most of those reviewed have been intended for use in the high schools, though some have been de signed for use in colleges as well. I have reviewed scores of books on American history, an armful on world "history (or European Civili zation, as the case might be), several dozen on such varied subjects as American government, civics, prob lems of democracy, citizenship, and such like, a few on economics, a handful on· geography, and several that hardly fit any known category.