See No Evil
Apr 23, 2005
Theodore Dalrymple writes a very disturbing article titled 'The Frivolity of Evil'. An excerpt:
Just as the IMF is the bank of last resort, encouraging commercial banks to make unwise loans to countries that they know the IMF will bail out, so the state is the parent of last resort—or, more often than not, of first resort. The state, guided by the apparently generous and humane philosophy that no child, whatever its origins, should suffer deprivation, gives assistance to any child, or rather the mother of any child, once it has come into being. In matters of public housing, it is actually advantageous for a mother to put herself at a disadvantage, to be a single mother, without support from the fathers of the children and dependent on the state for income. She is then a priority; she won't pay local taxes, rent, or utility bills.
Why would people behave morally when there is no incentive to OR why shouldn't people behave immorally when the disincentives are removed by the state? More:
There has been a long march not only through the institutions but through the minds of the young. When young people want to praise themselves, they describe themselves as "nonjudgmental." For them, the highest form of morality is amorality.
Yes, the real crime is being judgmental. Read the entire essay.
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