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“Pursuit of Happiness” (EP.56)
Summary
"Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" is a well-known phrase in the Declaration of Independence. These "unalienable rights" are given to all human beings by their Creator. There are to be protected and defended by governments. Note the Declaration said “Pursuit of happiness.” It made it clear that happiness itself was not to be protected and defended, while life and liberty were.
Links and References
Size of Government
Life is Hard
Can’t or Won’t?
Contact
Please do reach out with comments or questions. You can email me at [email protected], or connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
And you can subscribe to the podcast on your favorite device through Apple Podcasts, Google, or Stitcher.
Transcript
"Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" is a well-known phrase from our Declaration of Independence. The pursuit of happiness was included as one of the "unalienable rights" given to all human beings by their Creator. These rights are to be protected and defended by government. Note the Declaration said “Pursuit of happiness.” It made it clear that happiness itself was not to be protected and defended, while life and liberty were.
Today we can get to the core of the topic by looking at some definitions and differences:
Equal opportunity under the law vs equal opportunity, a level playing field.
Free vs reasonable access.
The right to pursue vs the right to have.
First. Equal opportunity under the law vs equal opportunity, a level playing field. As individuals and as a nation, we should insist upon equal opportunity under the law. As a fledgling nation, we set that goal, that statement of direction, some 250 years ago, and have been hard at it, committed to that goal, ever since. I’d be hard pressed to find any evidence of any remaining codified, legal lack of opportunity. Do you know of any? On the other hand, we will never live in a world of equal opportunities and equal playing fields. Some inequalities are congenital, for example if you are 5’2”, you will never play in the NBA. Some inequalities just happen. I went to public school through college, and paid my own way in college and grad school. Others had parents who paid for private schools all the way. Unequal? Yes. A natural part of life? Also yes. Are things like this something the government should fix? Oh, horrors!
Second. Free vs reasonable access. There is a lot of conversation these days about making more and more things free. Well, not free; free to the individual with the bill going to the taxpayers. Some things must be free; national defense, law enforcement and first responders and basic infrastructure. Most other things, e.g., post-high school education and healthcare, should be arranged so that everyone has reasonable access, and reasonable access does not mean free. Here’s a useful way of separating what should be free to individuals, paid for by the taxpayers, from services that the government might need to monitor and regulate, but should not pay for. In Size of Government we put forward a way for deciding if a task was properly the province of government to provide: “Ask two questions: 1. What needs to be done? and 2. Of those tasks, which are the ones that government does uniquely well?” As an example, law enforcement is properly provided by government, and things like entertainment, vacations and second homes are not. Those are easy black and white examples; others are gray and take a bit more time to answer, but there are answers. Most of life is laid out in shades of gray, and we must still draw bright lines or we will be forever waffling
The last point is the right to pursue vs. the right to have. Happiness was the word used by the Founders, but food, education, clothing, housing and more would also fit.
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By Will LudenSummary
"Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" is a well-known phrase in the Declaration of Independence. These "unalienable rights" are given to all human beings by their Creator. There are to be protected and defended by governments. Note the Declaration said “Pursuit of happiness.” It made it clear that happiness itself was not to be protected and defended, while life and liberty were.
Links and References
Size of Government
Life is Hard
Can’t or Won’t?
Contact
Please do reach out with comments or questions. You can email me at [email protected], or connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
And you can subscribe to the podcast on your favorite device through Apple Podcasts, Google, or Stitcher.
Transcript
"Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" is a well-known phrase from our Declaration of Independence. The pursuit of happiness was included as one of the "unalienable rights" given to all human beings by their Creator. These rights are to be protected and defended by government. Note the Declaration said “Pursuit of happiness.” It made it clear that happiness itself was not to be protected and defended, while life and liberty were.
Today we can get to the core of the topic by looking at some definitions and differences:
Equal opportunity under the law vs equal opportunity, a level playing field.
Free vs reasonable access.
The right to pursue vs the right to have.
First. Equal opportunity under the law vs equal opportunity, a level playing field. As individuals and as a nation, we should insist upon equal opportunity under the law. As a fledgling nation, we set that goal, that statement of direction, some 250 years ago, and have been hard at it, committed to that goal, ever since. I’d be hard pressed to find any evidence of any remaining codified, legal lack of opportunity. Do you know of any? On the other hand, we will never live in a world of equal opportunities and equal playing fields. Some inequalities are congenital, for example if you are 5’2”, you will never play in the NBA. Some inequalities just happen. I went to public school through college, and paid my own way in college and grad school. Others had parents who paid for private schools all the way. Unequal? Yes. A natural part of life? Also yes. Are things like this something the government should fix? Oh, horrors!
Second. Free vs reasonable access. There is a lot of conversation these days about making more and more things free. Well, not free; free to the individual with the bill going to the taxpayers. Some things must be free; national defense, law enforcement and first responders and basic infrastructure. Most other things, e.g., post-high school education and healthcare, should be arranged so that everyone has reasonable access, and reasonable access does not mean free. Here’s a useful way of separating what should be free to individuals, paid for by the taxpayers, from services that the government might need to monitor and regulate, but should not pay for. In Size of Government we put forward a way for deciding if a task was properly the province of government to provide: “Ask two questions: 1. What needs to be done? and 2. Of those tasks, which are the ones that government does uniquely well?” As an example, law enforcement is properly provided by government, and things like entertainment, vacations and second homes are not. Those are easy black and white examples; others are gray and take a bit more time to answer, but there are answers. Most of life is laid out in shades of gray, and we must still draw bright lines or we will be forever waffling
The last point is the right to pursue vs. the right to have. Happiness was the word used by the Founders, but food, education, clothing, housing and more would also fit.