Kinsley High School
Kinsley, Kansas
Teacher: Dr. Galen Boehme
How to Find a Balance
By Aubrey-Anne Fuller
12th grade
When dismissing a faculty member for undisclosed reasons, the Board of Education must consider the privacy rights of the absent faculty member, the legal responsibility to the students, and the consequences of mishandling the problem when dealing with the individual liberty of the person and the common good.
A problem my Board of Education is faced with is the subject of person versus people. Four “key” terms help one understand the problem at hand: Private property, confidentiality, public policy, and protected individual liberty. Private is more than a possession, but rather a person’s private life. The absent faculty member has the right to private property because every person has the right to protect himself against all forms of external aggression initiated by private individuals or by the state. Private encourages honesty. The private individuals are the citizens of the town where I live, who do not know the real truth. The state is the Board of Education, who is dismissing this faculty member. Confidentiality involves freedom. Freedom is a fundamental, personal, and social good, that is a requirement to man’s existence. Without freedom or confidentiality, no man could live with his secrets, which every person has the right to keep. Everyone, no matter what secret he holds, has the right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Public policy for this essay deals with the common good. Common good is what is good for all people, not just a few. The common good is a policy, and a sound policy requires that we consider long-term effects and all people, not simply short-term effects and a few people.
The local students should be given the truth. Truth hurts, but people respect knowing the truth and will cooperate more if the truth is told. Honesty is the best policy. The last “key” term is protected individual liberty. In a close society, everyone knows everyone’s name, including one’s highs and lows. These relationships make my society work. We work for the common good of all people, and sometimes we are working at different ends of the spectrum. I am very concerned about the problem facing my school. We all would like to know the truth. Whatever the real truth is, we are ready to accept it, and the Board should realize that. The Board has a right to protect an individual’s rights. The Board should at least tell us that it is a private matter. The Board cannot disclose any information. Public policy that dismisses liberty or doesn’t preserve or strengthen it should be immediately suspect in the minds of vigilant people. Liberty makes all the difference in the world.
After any problem is identified, a plan must be thought out. Most plans have components to be carried out. The components for this special problem are confidentiality, belief, and truth. I, as a student, would like to know the real truth, but maybe we do not want to know the real truth. Another component is believing in the system, as a way, not as a rule. Kershner’s First Law states that, “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.” This is an example my town must live by. The Board as a government wants power over the students and faculty. By looking at Kershner’s Law I can see that I do not want to be those taxpayers. I believe in the system, that people in office and people on the street are equal, and all have the same voice. My problem is to make others believe that as well. I know what I want to say and how to say it; I just do not know how to persuade others. The last component of mine is truth, just plain truth. I stated previously that the truth hurts, and that the students might not want to know the truth. In the matter of the faculty member, maybe we cannot be told the truth, but that should not keep the Board from saying so. What the Board needs to do is sit and tell us that for legal reasons it is not allowed to disclose the real truth. If that is said, the students may let the matter rest.
Implementation of plans is the hardest aspect. Everyone in society values truth and bases his relationships on it. This is why people need to find their voice in society. The people in my town are very current and love to gossip, but they never say much. In order to get this plan into action the people of my town must say their words to the faces of the ones they are upset with. If people find their voice in society, respect will bloom. Having a voice also means having liberty. When the Founding Fathers set up the government, they wanted more than anything freedom, and liberty. The Founding Fathers were the real people, unlike the politicians who are born rich. I have the liberty and freedom to say and think what I want, and others should too. But, I also have the freedom and liberty to take my private life and keep it private. The Board needs to find a medium between these two ends.
If these plans that I have set up are put into action, then trust is gained. I cannot ask people or make people change the way they live their lives, however, I can help bring this town back to what it was, where everyone is treated the same.
In conclusion, the problems that the absent faculty member faces and the problem that the local Board faces may or may not be related. But we as a community must have trust that the two parties have made the right decision. That level of trust will come when the two parties state that the reasons cannot be disclosed.
Answers To Questions Triggered by the Required Reading
‘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.”?
Machan uses the word “steal” to describe private property, and the limitations put on the government through private property, except where taxes are involved. By having our own property we as citizens have really limited the government. Except where taxes are involved and even taxes provide a limitation to the government. Often when having private property, businesses are involved. Business expenses are often used as a tax write-off. A person can go on a ten day vacation to Hawaii, and use it as a write-off. For instance, this person goes to an afternoon conference; therefore it is a write-off since the conference involves business. Businesses steal their way easily, without thinking about long term budgeting. Businesses live in the now and not the later.
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.
In my life this is used in the matter of my piano and my room. My piano was used when we bought it, and if I recall, has only been tuned twice in twelve years. Today, it seems, that everyone and their dog has a piano. Pianos can be used for many purposes, as decorations, shelves, and sometimes as an instrument. Bedrooms are similar. Bedrooms are used as storage, a place to sleep, and as a place to throw dirty laundry. We spend hundreds of dollars on designs in a room that we are rarely in.
Q-3 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.
Yes, I agree with Machan. A few weeks ago I was working at the local pizza parlor with three of my co-workers. It had been a busy night and along with waitress work I was doing odd jobs normally designated to the cooks. The boss’s wife was one of the other cooks, and she left early leaving me with all the waitress’ and half of the cook’s work. She left us because she knew that someone would finish the job which she had carelessly left. On a night when the restaurant closes at nine, I did not get home until midnight.
“Are We Going the Way of Rome” (Lawrence Reed)
Q-4 State Kershner’s First Law. Do you agree or disagree and why?
Kershner’s First Law as stated is, “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 agree with this in every sense. I believe that welfare and government aids need to be limited. Many people abuse these government handouts. Taxpayers pay for the lazy Americans. These people sometimes do nothing, but still are given government handouts. If more people start deciding that they need to be dependent on the government, then soon the government and its people will be broke.
Q-5 What industry was the first to be taken over by the government in both ancient Rome and the USA?
The first industry to be taken over by the government in both ancient Rome and the USA was transportation. In the instance of Rome, transportation was shipping. The Roman government felt that by using ships, traveling to other countries was possible. By traveling to other countries the Romans were able to sell goods that were new to this country.. The Romans could also tax imports. In the case of the USA, their first transportation was the railroad. The railroad allowed shipping to be done from the West Coast, to the East Coast. This was especially essential when the gold rush was going on. Gold could reach the East Coast faster, making it sell more quickly.
Q-6 Is cheapened money the cause or the outcome of inflation? Explain.
Cheapened money is the cause of inflation. When an economy is flooded, prices skyrocket, causing chaos. The government thinks it has the opportunity to spend without limits, but it cannot. This is evident by the lack of pure silver in today’s coins versus coins in the sixties. Things change over time, and in most cases become more expensive. In the end, however, it is not the price of an item, but rather if the purchase is a wise choice.
Q-7 How did the Edict of 301 affect Rome’s outcome?
The Edict of 301 affected Rome’s economy, by making the economy almost a threat. If one charged too much or paid employees too little, then this person could be put to death. Limitations set by the government, made economies into a dictatorship, and not a democracy. If a government has too much control, then, a society becomes extinct. Governments are supposed to be about the people and what the people want. After all, they are the ones living in the real world.
“Liberty and Individual Responsibility” (Dwight R. Lee)
Q-8 Lee claims that individuals could be “entirely independent of others” except for what? Explain.
We as individuals could be independent of others except for scarcity. Scarcity makes us interact with on another. Interaction leads to rules of social conduct that we people must live by. These rules give us restrictions on how we can act in and during activities. If we did not have scarcity, there would be a lead to restrictions. Even more restrictions would become present. Scarcity is the roles of etiquette, and politeness in life. The restriction of scarcity allow us to go to an activity called a black tie affair, and not wear jeans.
Q-9 Describe the dilemma concerning rules as discussed by Lee.
The dilemma of rules as discussed by Lee is the possibility of no rules. With no rules there would be much force. Without restrictions there would be force and brute strength. With no rules we would be forced to follow the “independence of the arbitrary will of another.” That is force and force does not motivate production or cooperation. People do not like to be forced. A fine line exists between force and rules. People follow rules to keep jobs and friends. People do not go with force, because it takes away independent choice.
Q-10 Why is the concept of private property crucial to freedom?
The concept that is crucial to freedom of private property is assurance. The assurance allows individuals to plan and carry out activities without returning to their activities to find them confiscated by others. Therefore, the lack of assurances, leaves little motivation for the people to be productive and leaves no reason to interact.
Lawrence Reed’s testimony before the U.S. Senate Budget Committee.
Q-11 Argue both pro and con that in his testimony Lawrence Reed was advocating compassion and aid for the poor.
In Lawrence Reed’s testimony before the Budget Committee, he speaks about compassion. He speaks about the poor and states that to be compassionate mankind must give aid and help those who are in worse situations than they are. In principles 1-6 Reed refers to compassion as caring, involving, trusting, time, and just giving of one’s self, to the aid of others. But, compassion is more than five ways just stated. Compassion has its downfalls. Compassion is also a weakness. Yes, caring about others is a wonderful, humble trait, but not always positive. People learn to rely on compassion and less on themselves.
Q-12 “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 word Mr. Reed’s meaning.
What Mr. Reed is saying has a connection with Darwin’s, Survival of the Fittest. Not everyone in the world makes the same amount of money or drives the same car. This difference is what makes our world what it is. In our economy we are allowed to choose our future. One may be a doctor, and another a man who still lives with his mother doing nothing. These decisions are by choice. But if payments and salaries are equal for the two men described above, what would there be to strive for? A man who is controlled by the government in every form is not free, but the man who has the chance to control his own destiny is.