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Words of Wisdom

The Pursuit of Happiness

Posted on October 22, 2020October 22, 2020

The pursuit of happiness is not about finding the right job or the right shampoo. It is about being fully human. To secure the right to pursue happiness, governments implement policies that promote the fulfilling our Nature. As far as governments go, their first duty is do no harm and avoid any policies that de-humanize as this is by definition within its control. Where prudent, governments outlaw behaviors that intrinsically corrupt our nature, such as theft and murder. Whatever its actions, it always treats humans as individuals, not as groups or masses.

One of the most insidious ways governments fail to treat citizens as human beings is by classifying them as the “poor.” In doing so, governments redefine them into something no longer quite human. The “poor,” after all, lack civic or moral agency. They are responsible for neither their condition nor their behavior. Anyone classified as poor gets an entitlement of food, housing, and contraceptives. What they don’t get is charity. Only individuals can give or receive charity. Charity humanizes. Government programs dehumanize.

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