I love liberty. I hate being pushed around by anyone and that includes the government. Whenever possible, I like to participate in making the decisions that affect my life.
As a result, I applaud Donald Trump’s efforts to reduce the federal footprint. Eliminating unnecessary regulations was a step in the right direction. So is, defending the constitution. Its checks and balances are essential for keeping tyranny at bay.
Nonetheless, these are negative accomplishments. They help keep would-be dictators from stealing our freedom. But let’s say that this defense of liberty succeeds. What then? Will this alone fulfill our desires? Will it automatically make us happier?
Readers of my columns know that I include liberty as one of the five principles necessary to maintain the integrity of a mass techno-commercial society. Freedom is essential if people are to make important decisions for themselves and others.
Nevertheless these decisions need to be good ones. Liberty provides opportunities. It does not ensure that people will exploit these prudently. In fact, the opposite is currently happening. Many millions of Americans expect to be saved by ceding their choices to others. They fear they might make mistakes.
The problem is that there are some kinds of selections only individuals can make. We must therefore use our freedom to take these upon ourselves. I am thinking of Freud’s criteria for mental health. These were workand love. Unless people are capable of both, they will not be content.
A corollary of this is that the government cannot provide satisfactory work or genuine love. We must achieve these objectives for ourselves. To begin with, nowadays with socialists rising in prominence, they demand that the state provide us with jobs. They shun the free market as too risky.
Apparently these folks have never spent time in communist nations. These places guaranteed full employment. The difficulty with this is at least twofold. First, when bureaucrats decide where you should work, the odds are you will be trapped in labors you do not like.
Second, if you will have a job no matter what, you will not have an incentive to apply yourself. Instead you will just get by. In the end, there will be no sense of achievement and consequently little gratification.
Although it can be anxiety producing to choose one’s own occupation, taking the time to select wisely is essential. So is developing the skills to perform one’s tasks well. This is not trivial in that a sense of accomplishment is critical to our wellbeing. Personal achievements make us feel good about ourselves.
Of course, if we apply liberty to become our best selves, we could fail. Maybe we won’t fulfill our dreams. The other side of the coin, however, is that if we cede our independence to faceless administrators, the resulting dependence is sure to leave us feeling empty.
The same applies to seeking love. If we decide that there is too much pain involved in finding Mr. or Ms. Right, we will have to settle for being unloved. Others cannot furnish the perfect match because only we can identify what meets our needs.
Nor can others do the work of establishing a secure marriage. Only we can make a genuine commitment. Only we are equipped to negotiate our differences fairly with a partner who does likewise. Nowadays, with personal intimacy voluntary, if we do not put in the effort to make our relationships work, they will not.
Again, because too many Americans demand success in activities that are inherently insecure, they eschew liberty. They instead withdraw into an electronic universe where loneliness is the norm. Unfortunately computers and iPhones are not a viable substitute for flesh and blood interactions.
Love can go wrong. It often does. Marriages fall apart. They frequently do. But abstaining from the game is worse. The answer is that intimacy has to be worked at by us. Unless we use our liberty to discover how to love, there is nothing the government can do to fill this void.
With so many Americans looking to politicians for answers, it is no wonder discontent is rampant. Elected officials will promise us anything, but that does not mean they can deliver. It is therefore time that we looked to ourselves for salvation.
Yes, let’s pursue liberty. But let us also grow up so that we can take advantage of its benefits. As long as we continue to worship at the altar of big government, we will find it is nothing but a golden calf.
Melvyn L. Fein, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus
Kennesaw State University
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