Camden Central High School
Camden, Tennessee
Teacher: Mrs. Wanda Allen
The Role of Personal Responsibility
In Balancing Individual
Liberty and the Common Good
By Logan
Barber
12th
grade
In the old days the people in Europe had no true liberties. They were poorly represented and were rarely considered in any kind of decision. The “common good” in those days was based on how happy the rich people were at the time. Now the ancestors of those people have made this country into something they never had in Europe. Yet, at the same time, laws can go to far in liberating some people but subjugating the others. It is every Americans job to do all he can to fight for his and his fellow Americans’ rights.
In the beginning of this country, the people who decided most things were the more wealthy and well to do people. As time moved on, more and more people earned their right to voice their opinions in our country’s development. All throughout our history our founding fathers and political leaders have tried to make everything equal and fair. Legislation was passed to allow minorities and several other groups to vote. This was a major step in balancing the liberties of our people. But that was high up in the political spectrum. How then can the normal, average, every-day Joe change the country or effect the course of the future?
Well the tried and true, almost cliché thing to bring up, is to vote. This is the main way the average person can help do what he sees as necessary for his liberties. The people in political positions make many decisions about laws that are brought up and everyday issues. This can effect what rights people have to an extent. If a more liberal congress is elected, then more liberal laws will be passed. A good example of this is the new issues arising on the gay marriage subject. The reason for the main controversy is that there have been liberal people elected that want laws allowing same-sex marriages allowed; however, there are also conservative people in positions that want to see these laws voted down. The voters of America are responsible for balancing out rights of themselves and of others.
Another was is also a tried and true way. Just ask Martin Luther King, Jr. He was black and at that time he was seen as half of a white man; yet, he was just one of the people in this country that used simple civil disobedience to change the values of a nation. This method was consisted of peaceful methods such as marches and demonstrations aimed at showing the nation the plight of the African-American people. A more recent example of this would be the Alabama Supreme Court Judge that refused to dissemble a Christian display in the public court house. He simply stated that he thought the country should be more religiously oriented. His idea was based on the fact that this country was founded with religion as a guiding force but that now it had strayed far from that. He did break laws but he did it in a peaceful manner. Although this man was a state Supreme Court Judge, he still took it upon himself to participate in an action aimed balancing liberties or the people. Many other religions are able to suppress the views of Christianity today and he saw this and did his best to fight against it.
One good way, despite the lack of faith in it, is to contact your representatives of your state and even your county. Call and write letters to inform these people what you think and how you feel. How can people in power know how to represent you if you have no contact with them. Some may ignore what the people say, but others do want your input on many subjects. This can be extremely important in the county area because views of the people are listened to more in a smaller setting. Most changes or things that come about in small towns and rural communities come from the “Letters to the Editor” page of the local newspaper. This is where people write in to talk about how they think things should be changed to better the community.
To sum up my main points I mainly want to say that the best way to balance the liberties of all and help the common good is to be a productive and active member of society. Express your views freely to those who will listen and listen to others. Look at all things with an open mind and see things from several points of view. Help organize and participate in activities that promote your values and beliefs. Take a stance on the issues at hand in our country and vote on them. Try to elect people whom you think will do a good job at bettering the country. The main way to balancing individual liberty and the common good is to DO SOMETHING!
Questions
Welfare State on the Street Where You Live (Tibor Machan)
Q1- Why does Machan use "steal" in his statement: "Private property solves this problem, but was abandoned a long time ago when taxes reached the point where we can steal our way to being provided with all sorts of things we desire, never mind thinking about paying for them or long-range budgeting."?
A1. He uses this word because the people who are taking things without work or pay are stealing from future generations. They aren’t considering long term effects about what will happen. A current example would be pollution. We as a nation are not taking care of what we do with our environment. We take whatever resources needed and hardly ever put anything back. This will rob future generations of what we had, so u could say that we are stealing things from our children.
Q2- Machan said: "For that which is common to the greatest number has the least care bestowed upon it." Give two examples of this from your personal experience.
A2. CD’s. I have tons and tons of burnt ones but I don’t take care of them simply because if needed I can just pop another one into the computer and re-burn it. Another thing I have a lot of but seems to fall into disrepair are video games. I used to be a very avid gamer but now I don’t play many games and therefore all of my one hundred or so games just lay around and get scratched or covered with dust.
Q3- Do you agree with Machan that "...everybody is more inclined to neglect the duty which he expects another to fulfill; as in families many attendants are often less useful than a few."? Give an objective example of this.
A3. At my work, certain people don’t clean their area because I am the actual janitor. This means that I have to do two or three peoples jobs besides my own. The cooks will not sweep their area or hardly even clean their grill. This leaves these jobs to me.
Are We Going the Way of Rome? (Lawrence Reed)
Q4- State Kershner's First Law. Do you agree or disagree and why?
A4-When a self governing people confer upon their government the power to take from some and give to others, the process will not stop until the last bone of the last taxpayer is picked bare. I think this is true. The government can take too much from some and give to others. Like those who abuse welfare programs. Taxpayers pay enormous amounts to keep these people “comfortable” when they don’t always need the money. Then taxes get raised so the other people abusing these programs can stay just as “comfortable”.
Q5- What industry was the first to be taken over by government in both ancient Rome and the USA?
A5. Transportation and shipping
Q6- Is cheapened money the cause or the outcome of inflation? Explain.
A6. It is the cause. If money loses its value then prices will seem higher. Also prices will raise to meet the demand for the inaccessible good or service. This is when inflation sets in.
Q7- How did the Edict of 301 affect Rome's economy?
A7-It sent the society into a chaos. It completely disabled the free market and that meant only certain things approved by the emperor could be sold. This led to a dissatisfied people.
Liberty and
Individual Responsibility
(Dwight R. Lee)
Q8- Lee claims that individuals could be "entirely independent of others"
except for what? Explain.
A8-Scarcity. If personalities, thoughts, and beliefs were the same for everyone, then we would have no affect on the people we interact with. Since everyone is different and personalities are “scarce” then we have more effect on each other because we introduce new ideas to different people all the time.
Q9- Describe the dilemma concerning rules as discussed by Lee.
A9-If there are no rules then one has to force his beliefs on others. This will be a rule of force because the strongest will exert the rules he or she wants. This means that even without established rules, there will be rules.
Q10- Why is the concept of private property crucial to freedom?
A10- Having private property lets people be individuals. We can own something that no one else can have and that gives people a sense of pride and accomplishments. Also if people want more private property they will work more to get what they desire. In this they also exercise their freedoms in choosing what job to take to get the money for an item.
Lawrence
Reed's testimony before the U.S. Senate Budget Committee.
Q11- Argue both pro and con that in his testimony Lawrence Reed was advocating
compassion and aid for the poor.
A11-Well he said that if the government could give many things it could take away many things. This seems to say to me that he wanted to let the poor people to be on their own because if they were given everything then they have to take those things from someone else. Yet, he did say that if the poor were actually trying to make something of themselves and their situations, that they should be given help. He didn’t believe in letting down people who were doing all they could. At the same time though, he didn’t really like the idea that the government takes from some to give to others.
Q12- "If people are free, they will not earn equal incomes; conversely, show me a people who have equal incomes and I will show you a people who are not free." Explain in your own words Mr. Reed's meaning.
A12-This is the difference between communism and a democracy. People in a communist society are almost completely equal (well at least in theory). The government divides up everything equally between all the people. Therefore these people are equal. However, they cant choose their jobs and other things in their life so they are not free. In a democracy, people are free to go as far as they want in life. People who have the determination can become millionaires while ones who don’t can take small jobs that pay meager salaries. These people are free but they are not equal. There are many varying degrees of poverty and richness because the people can choose what they do.