EDITOR’S NOTE: This article continues the discussion of government and human nature, found here and here.
Politics is, by definition, the relationship between people and governments, and most political conversations and debates are, at their core, about how much government involvement each of us wishes to see in the various aspects of our lives. Distilled to its essence, politics is actually about the degree to which citizens empower government.
With this in mind, lets consider the commixture of government with the private sector in several parts of society:
- Government + Wall Street
- Government + Defense Industry
- Government + Health Insurance
- Government + Environment
- Government + Economy
- Government + Labor
- Government + Big Business
- Government + The Poor
Most people, it’s safe to say, consider some of these suspect or harmful, and others positive or vital. Some are considered essential functions of government, others are nefarious entanglements exploited for personal gain and certain to cause harm. Some are expected to produce Good and benefit society, others are presumed Bad and benefit the few at the greater expense to the many.
Which of the associations you view in each of these lights depends on your political proclivities and personal priorities. You are more apt to trust individuals associated with some of these associations more than you will trust others – again – based on your political proclivities and personal priorities. The trustworthy are more likely to be considered altruistic, good-hearted and public-minded, while the others will likely be considered selfish, cold-hearted and greedy.
A green-minded liberal might welcome the government’s deep involvement in environmental matters, and especially in matters of global warming, where coordinated global action is deemed necessary. A skeptical conservative might see this deep involvement as a fertile playground for self-enrichment.
A defense-minded conservative might welcome the government’s deep involvement with the companies that produce state-of-the-art military equipment, on the presumption that national defense is a government’s first responsibility. A skeptical liberal might see the deep involvement as a fertile playground for self-enrichment.
Both viewpoints share a flaw: an uneven application of the realities of human nature.
Geneticist Richard Dawkins has posited that altruism is not a natural evolutionary outcome, for the simple reason that the altruist’s beneficence towards the group will inevitably be outweighed by subversion from within. Consider a group of 100 who resist external threats by gathering together. The most altruistic, the ones who are inclined to put the group ahead of themselves, are more likely to be at the vanguard of that defense than the selfish. The selfish, even if just slightly more so than the altruistic, will, by being selfish, give themselves a greater chance for individual survival. As generations progress and the selfish gene gets selected over the altruistic gene, the survival strategy may suffer and the group may go extinct.
Or, it may not. Threats aren’t static, nor are they permanent, and every new strategy that arises to combat a new threat will be subject to the same disparity in altruism. In any group effort, there will always be the selfish, and in the long run, they will “succeed” better than the altruistic.
Lets apply this to the relationship between government and various societal elements. Government is unique in that it has a monopoly on systemic force, and there is much to be gained from being in charge of that systemic force. We deceive ourselves when we choose to believe that government is altruistic and resistant to subversion-from-within in some cases but not in others. Government is always subject to subversion from within, and the selfish, e.g. cronyists, rent-seekers, narcissists, self-promoters, those who seek personal power over systemic goals, and those whose livelihoods depend on a certain world view holding dominance, facts aside, are inevitably going to find ways to lever things to their advantage despite the altruists’ attempts to the contrary.
This is simple human nature, hard-wired into our DNA. Certainly, an individual can rise above his programming, and many great leaders, both in government and in the private sector, have done so, with great benefit to humanity. But, even these leaders are vulnerable to selfishness, both their own (power corrupts) and within the ranks of their subordinates, and theirs is an endless struggle against such subversion. Those that blindly trust, rather than warily delegate, are more likely to suffer betrayal.
Thus, we can encapsulate the proper relationship between citizens and their government: We should warily delegate, not blindly trust. We should vest only as much power in government as is absolutely necessary, we should steadfastly refuse government’s calls for more power unless and until a very strong case is made, and we should demand perpetual accountability. Both history and human nature show us that government is certain to disappoint us, that cronyism, corruption, waste, fraud and the like are not only the norm, but a force as inexorable as the tide.
When we are uneven in our trust/distrust, we ignore this hard truth, and if we expect different outcomes from different aspects of government, we do so out of nothing more than personal bias.
Distrust government in all things, not only those that go against your politics. Don’t criticize military waste while ignoring Medicare waste, or vice versa. Don’t think that the problems found in alliance of health insurers and the government can be fixed by giving more power to government. Don’t wave off inefficiencies, corruption, waste and human selfishness in certain sectors of government merely because you think those sectors are vital or advance goals you deem important. Realize that, when power can be wielded, it will inevitably be leveraged for personal gain.
Is this cynical? Sure. It’s also correct. Human nature is as inexorable as gravity.
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Crux of people government relationship – Both history and human nature show us that government is certain to disappoint us, that cronyism, corruption, waste, fraud and the like are not only the norm, but a force as inexorable as the tide.