The 'Art of Association' and The Case For Smaller Government
Annie Lowrey of the Washington Independent writes about the increased suicide rate caused by the desperation faced by many among the ranks of the jobless. Lowrey cites an estimated suicide rate for the unemployed of two to three times the national average. But in contrast to these grim statistics, Lowrey also reports on the bittersweet story of a 45-year old, unemployed man named Scott.
Scott, posting in an online forum for the unemployed, wrote about his desperation and confessed to having overwhelming suicidal thoughts. In several posts, he announced that he’d probably kill himself by the end of the day. Forum users quickly responded by exhorting Scott to seek counseling, to call a suicide hotline, and to check himself into a hospital. Other users called upon the authorities to search for Scott in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he had disclosed he was living. When Scott was finally found, a fellow forum user (and complete stranger) drove over 100 miles to pick Scott up and bring him to her home, where her family set up a makeshift room for him. Today Scott is far from being freed of his despair – he’s still unemployed and says he feels like an imposition – but he’s alive because of the concern and generosity of fellow Americans.
There are [at least] two reactions to Scott’s story. The first, as Harold Pollack exhibits in the Huffington Post, is to whine about how the government isn’t doing enough to help people in distress:
What is humiliating is the way our nation has failed to mount an effective response to widespread human pain during the worst economic crisis we've faced in decades. We [by “we,” Harold means the government] have failed to act effectively and decisively while millions of our fellow citizens have lost homes, have lost jobs, have seen their unemployment benefits expire.
But Harold urges readers not to lose hope in The One just yet:
If you are a progressive...you may be especially discouraged because much of the inaction has occurred under a Democratic administration and under Democratic majorities in the House and Senate. This is indeed discouraging. Don't allow disappointment to make you cynical and passive as we approach midterm elections. Republican victories make things much worse.
The second reaction to Scott’s story is to view it not as a disappointment in government, but as a triumph of the American people’s ability to care for one another without the involvement of government agencies or the coercion of bureaucrats.
The band of strangers that came together to provide a support net for Scott were practicing what Tocqueville termed “the art of association” in his masterpiece, Democracy in America. Peter Berkowitz, in an essay entitled “The Art of Association,” writes:
Tocqueville maintained that Americans have a special aptitude for [“the art of association”]. The associations Tocqueville had in mind were not created by the state or the law, but by the initiative of energetic and self-reliant individuals. Their benefits, he believed, extended well beyond the achievement of the immediate economic, moral or political ends for which individuals establish them. Associational life shifts the gaze of individuals away from themselves toward others; it generates in each an awareness of the needs and the limitations of others; it enlarges self- interest narrowly conceived by making vivid the private advantage that flows from cooperation for the public good; and it teaches the habits of cooperation and self-restraint by giving individuals regular opportunities to practice them.
But I guess so-called progressives like Harold Pollack must ignore the successes that occur without the involvement of the government, lest anyone start making the case that we could make due with less government.
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Jul '10
Re: The 'Art of Association' and The Case For Smaller Government
Obviously, Mr. Pollack doesn't understand that the purpose of government isn't to address "human pain."
Government is not synonymous to charity.
Jun '10
Re: The 'Art of Association' and The Case For Smaller Government
What troubles poor people most is not poverty. It's the loss of dignity. But if you're humble enough to tell people that you don't have food, you'll get food. If you're humble enough to tell people that you're cold, they'll give you the coat off their back. They'll do it with great joy. And they'll try not to injure your pride while doing it. That's what makes America such a beautiful place. It's not government social work that makes America beautiful. It's the number of people in America that are eager to do God's work with their own hands. True yesterday, true today.
Aug '10
Re: The 'Art of Association' and The Case For Smaller Government
What a moving story. Tocqueville's proved right again.
Have you ever noticed how the false dichotomy between the caretaker state and the "completely self-reliant individual" favors the Left?
Non-conservatives/libertarians often think that conservatives/libertarians believe in the myth of the "totally self-made man", and some self-identified conservatives/libertarians even claim they believe this myth themselves.
But anyone with eyes knows that total self-reliance, total self-sufficiency, is impossible: despite the many virtues of self-reliance, we humans are by nature dependent creatures -- dependent on accidents of birth or fortune, on others' words... Nor is an economy where everyone is self-sufficient terribly productive. We need each other!
But needing each other isn't the same as needing the State. And the wonder to me is that so many otherwise intelligent people seem to conflate the two.
Re: The 'Art of Association' and The Case For Smaller Government
hi friend! I thought of another anecdote on the topic: when I was teaching at that summer camp last month, we had a team-building exercise where we were asked to align ourselves with a point on a compass according to how we function in a committee environment. Over half of the people picked North, which was defined by a strong tendency towards taking control and being in charge, occasionally resulting in an attitude of knowing what's best for others. The tiniest group picked South, as I did, which was characterized by a prevailing need to take into consideration the feelings of others. We were the softies not the steamrollers. I think on a small scale, every group has some of each (East and West were people who overthink or people who looked at the big picture) and it works as a mixture. But in government, the Norths all end up as leaders and suddenly we've lost those other perspectives. It's interesting.
Re: The 'Art of Association' and The Case For Smaller Government
whatsthefracas: But in government, the Norths all end up as leaders and suddenly we've lost those other perspectives. It's interesting. · Aug 19 at 1:59pm
Very interesting indeed. It seems that these so-called "Norths" would be especially drawn to particular careers in which power and influence are at stake: government, perhaps academia, and perhaps certain expressions of journalism/media? I also wonder if there tends to be any correlation between the different personalities of the compass and political ideology...