The Essential Question - Common Good vs. Individual Liberty
In Partisanship
vs. Tribalism, we explored the devolution in our politics that has torn our
2 political parties so far apart that they can’t reach any sensible compromises. On almost any issue, Republicans and
Democrats immediately gird for battle.
They take up extremely conservative or progressive positions. Worse, they misrepresent the other’s position
as being even more extreme than it really is.
And their non-mainstream media outlets act like giant amplifiers. Is it any wonder that nothing gets done?
The vast majority of Americans are sick of this. It’s not that hard to sit down with someone
with a different opinion and reach a reasonable compromise. In fact, it’s deceptively easy if we realize
that most issues revolve around the same Essential Question. Let’s
see how this works.
Ripped from the headlines
- Should we have a public option for medical insurance?
- Should we allow civilians to own semi-automatic rifles?
- Should the government establish policies that address climate change?
- Should big banks be allowed to trade in derivatives?
- How much income tax should Warren Buffet pay?
What do all these questions have in common? At first glance, very little. Each asks a question about a very distinct
government policy. All these questions
are hard to answer. Yet each revolves
around the same essential question about our country.
Here’s a clue about that essential question:
“We the People
of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice,
insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the
general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our
Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of
America.”
Curiously enough, this preamble is the only part of our
Constitution that says anything about the purpose of our government. Virtually everything else in the Constitution
is about form and structure: separation
of powers, elections, rights, and so forth.
The preamble says that we united to form a government that
would provide for a common good:
Justice, Tranquility, Welfare, and the Blessings of Liberty.
But the preamble also contains an inherent conflict: the blessings of liberty, i.e. individual
freedoms, sometimes have to be sacrificed to provide for other parts of the
common good. Why? Let’s look at those questions again and see
how people with different points of view might answer them.
Issue
|
Conservatives might say
|
Progressives might say
|
The conflict
|
Public option for medical
insurance
|
Insurance companies are in the
business of providing this. Everyone
is free to get their insurance through their job or buy on the open market.
|
Public option would allow the
less fortunate to get healthcare. We
spend too much of our GDP on health care. A healthy society helps everyone be
productive.
|
Right of companies to pursue
business and freedom of choice vs. welfare of people
|
Semi-automatic rifles
|
The 2nd Amendment provides an absolute right to
own guns. We must protect ourselves
from government tyranny.
|
Semi-automatic guns do not belong in civilian hands as
they create an extreme public safety hazard.
|
Freedom to own guns vs. public safety and tranquility
|
Climate change
|
Government has no role in regulating
climate change. People should be free
to run their businesses and their lives as they see fit.
|
Climate change is affecting our
very existence on earth. Government
regulation is necessary to prevent environmental disaster.
|
Freedom of choice in living and
business vs. general welfare
|
Banks trading derivatives
|
Banks should be free to make money any way they can. Derivatives are legitimate investments that
don’t hurt anyone else if they lose money.
|
Risky trading by big banks eventually causes financial
crises and recessions that affect everyone in the economy. They should be prevented from doing this.
|
Freedom to pursue business vs. general welfare
|
Warren Buffet’s taxes
|
Wealthy people have worked hard
to earn their money and should be allowed to keep as much of it as they can.
|
Wealth inequality is eroding the
fabric of our economy. Middle class
jobs paying a living wage have disappeared.
Economic gains should be more widely distributed. The wealthy should
pay more to support a strong social safety net.
|
Freedom to accumulate wealth vs.
general welfare (good paying jobs and social needs)
|
The Essential Question
These examples illustrate that at the heart of such issues
lies a conflict between an individual freedom and the common good. So the Essential Question, which we have to
answer every time, is: Where do we draw
the line between individual liberties and the common good?
If only it were that easy.
The answer to the question will be slightly different depending on the
issue and who stands to gain or lose from the answer. Sometimes it’s business vs. citizens. Sometimes it’s one group of citizens vs.
another. Still, if we can reframe the
Essential Question for the particular circumstance, it’s a way to get to an
answer.
And if it were just a handful of people in a room, we could
work things out. Instead, we have 535
members of Congress representing 325 million Americans. We have thousands of lobbyists spending
billions of dollars to influence (purchase?) that Congress. And we have dozens of political activist
groups advocating on any given issue.
Now Our Imperfect Union doesn’t have a magic formula for
getting to answers. We are not trying to
resolve all these conflicts. But we are
trying to understand how our government, on our behalf, is supposed to resolve
them. And we are advocates for fixing
the broken parts of government that is preventing progress.
How is government supposed to work?
At the Federal level, the rest of the Constitution defines
the government. All the articles and
amendments explain how the system is supposed to work. In simple terms, we citizens vote for a
Congress that establishes laws. We elect
a President and Vice President who are to carry out those laws. And those branches appoint judges who keep
everyone else honest. They are all
supposed to define the common good and decide where to draw the line on
individual liberties.
But there’s another complication. The Tenth Amendment to the Constitution says
that the power of the Federal government is limited, and that all other powers
and rights are reserved to the states that make up the union or the citizens
themselves. So now we have a second inherent conflict in the Constitution: when do the powers of the states override
those of the Federal government? When do
the states have the liberty to act without considering the common good of the
republic? Finally, how do states resolve
the conflict between individual liberties and the common good established by
each state’s constitution?
Why isn’t it working?
We’re glad you subscribed to Our Imperfect Union to find
out! There are many reasons.
It starts with differing political philosophies. Conservatives and progressives start with a
different understanding on the basic role of government. When they advocate on an issue, they
sometimes have a hard time moving towards the center. The poor moderates, who think they have good
answers, are caught in the middle. When
government works, compromise is forged from a healthy debate.
But in Partisanship
vs. Tribalism, we concluded that the tribalists on both sides are
exploiting weaknesses in the rules, or outright ignoring them, to get their
way.
Our Imperfect Union’s raison d’etre is to understand all the
weaknesses in the rules that prevent government from working and fix them. We are tired of electing different people and
expecting better results. Our agenda for
change on our About
this blog page is our roadmap.
So what can I do now?
Think about the Essential Question. As you think about any policy issue, see if
you can reframe it as the trade-off between individual liberty and the common
good. Use this perspective as you talk,
post, and write.
And try to see both sides of the question. Don’t think your point of view is always
right. Common good and individual liberties
are both important.
What do you think? Is
this the Essential Question? Does the
common good always have to prevail, or do individual liberties sometimes
win? Can you share examples for us to
consider? Your comments are welcome, as
long as they are...essential.
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Upcoming posts
- Fifty years ago - When government worked
- How is our government is supposed to work?
- Democracy or Republic – which are we?
- What's the matter with Congress?
I enjoyed this post! I've been thinking a lot recently about family leave: a company's rights to offer benefits to their employees vs. the common good of supporting new parents, which leads to overall longevity and well-being.
ReplyDeleteThank you Michelle. That's a great example of a common good that we don't hear much about, yet strong families are the backbone of a good society.
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