Republicans and Their Faulty Moral Arithmetic - Comments

Sometimes you read something so absurd, you just have to comment on it. Today it is a column in the Wall Street Journal by Arthur Brooks titled, "Republicans and Their Faulty Moral Arithmetic". In it, Brooks argues that the GOP has ceded the issue of 'caring' to Progressive Democrats. The fact is he couldn't be more wrong. He is correct that perception is political reality, but only because many Americans have become incapable of understanding what's good for them.

Brooks states, "If Republicans and conservatives double down on the promotion of economic growth, job creation and traditional values, Americans might turn away from softheaded concerns about 'caring.' Right? Wrong."

As the cornerstone of his opinion piece, this one presumption exposes the flaw in his suggestion that these issues are somehow counter to his definition of caring. He couldn't be more wrong.

If caring is defined by the current Marxist Progressive standard, it means taking money from those who earn it, and redistributing it to those who can't or won't earn their own. This 'caring' is nothing of the kind. It is no more in the interests of the recipient than the concern the drug dealer has when selling his drugs to that addict. This Progressive form of caring is no less destructive either, as it destroys incentive, pride and self-reliance.

Republican promotion of economic growth, job creation and traditional values is the type of caring that every American needs, including the tens of millions the Progressive Democrat have ruined with giveaways and expectation of something for nothing. At issue today is the question why tens of millions of Americans can't recognize that they're being bought and made addicts to a dependency on government? There are many reasons, from ruined public schools, sick lessons from mainstream media, and the poison of collectivism and union protection of those who deserve no protection in the workplace. But all of these reasons all have something in common too. Yes, Marxist Progressivism is the root cause of them too.

Caring is not defined by government's ability to extort the worth of one American to buy the support of another. Caring is defined by doing what is in the best interest of that needy American, even if the lesson is hard and it demands work from those who'd rather sell their vote for a handout.

Mr. Brooks should be ashamed that he's succumbed to this destructive thinking. Caring is not defined by perceptions. It is defined in the improving health of a society by instilling the best values and work ethic. By this definition, America hasn't been this sick in a very long time. Measuring success by the growth of welfare programs, such as Food Stamps, is about as wrong as it can get.

Also with this standard, it is crystal clear that Marxist Progressivism does the opposite, and it does it by design. Dependency on government is at the foundations of Marxist Progressivism, and perceptions aside, the total opposite of 'caring'.