Nicky Cheese

Hardly timely but since I (strive to) blog about all things relating to personal autonomy…I want to cite the following article from the mid-April edition of the Economist. The context is political pandering, which all too often has the effect of replacing the concept of rational human beings with the concept of ‘the masses’, or-to borrow a term from ancient Rome-plebeians.

Yes, not the most inspiring view of the human condition, and not the view that most Americans accept. Myself included.

But this pandering to “ordinary Americans” is annoying in all sorts of ways. Isn’t America supposed to be a meritocracy? Two-thirds of Americans reject the idea that people’s chances in life are determined by circumstances that are beyond their control, a far higher proportion than in Europe. Almost 90% say that they admire people who have got rich through hard work. Yet whenever elections come around politicians treat the people at the bottom of the heap as the embodiment of American values. And aren’t Americans supposed to believe in self-reliance? America’s farms are some of the country’s biggest subsidy hogs. Many small towns-Congressman Jack Murtha’s Johnstown in central Pennsylvania is an egregious example-are kept alive only by federal pork. [emphasis mine]

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: we are more than mere automatons. Own it!