{"id":39959,"date":"2025-01-16T13:05:11","date_gmt":"2025-01-16T21:05:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=39959"},"modified":"2025-01-16T13:05:11","modified_gmt":"2025-01-16T21:05:11","slug":"the-price-of-independence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/the-price-of-independence\/","title":{"rendered":"The Price of Independence"},"content":{"rendered":"

I confess that when I read the title of this week’s book\u2013 <\/span>Why Liberalism Failed\u2013<\/span><\/i> I jumped to the conclusion that this was going to be a discussion about why the political party on the left has failed.<\/span><\/p>\n

That would be confusing to me because, in my current context, \u201cliberal\u201d describes people who have a focus on helping other people and making sure that those in the margins do not fall through the cracks. While there is a long way to go, it appears that the liberal policies of the current (soon-to-be past) administration have borne out the efficacy of that focus. \u201cSo,\u201d I wondered, as I read the title, \u201cHow could liberalism have failed?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

I also thought that \u201cliberal\u201d was the opposite of \u201cconservative.\u201d To understand what I mean by that, we need to look at my beliefs about conservatism:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Like liberals, conservatives ultimately aim for the common good but do so through a more narrowly focused view of the law. They believe that less government involvement is better for the nation. They believe that market forces are more likely to provide the common good through a financial trickle-down mechanism.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\u201cBetween<\/a><\/p>\n

(Source – 1)<\/p>\n

Liberals believe that this trickle-down mechanism doesn’t work (which has been proven over and over again since Reagan\u2019s presidency; see the graph above) because people are too narrowly focused on their own good instead of the common good. As a result of these policies, the wage gap has increased. So, liberals put into place more institutions that are intended to prevent people from falling through the cracks created by trickle-down economics. These institutions do solve some problems but also inherently have their own issues.<\/span>
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In other words, my initial thoughts about liberalism were that it has less focus on personal financial gain and more focus on the common good, in general. Why? The evidence of my eyes, personally and in the national news.<\/span>
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Individualism
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What I have discovered in reading Deneen’s book is that his definition of liberalism refers primarily to a sense of <\/span>liberty<\/span><\/i>. How is that liberty achieved? He explains: \u201cAt the heart of liberal theory and practice is the preeminent role of the state as agent of individualism\u201d (2).\u00a0<\/span>
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We clearly see this focus on individual liberty in the text of our Declaration of Independence:<\/span>
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We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. (3)<\/span>
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Deneen\u2019s Core Argument
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Deneen explains that historically (during pre-Christian antiquity, particularly ancient Greece), there was a reciprocal arrangement between the individual\u2019s agreement to self-governance through virtue, and institutional self-governance through achieving the common good. (4)<\/span>
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Three Key Shifts<\/b>
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Deneen’s core argument about how liberalism, as he defines it, came to dominate Western thought and politics involves three \u201crevolutions.\u201d He identifies three key shifts in thinking that laid the groundwork for liberalism’s rise (5):<\/span>
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  1. Rejection of “the high”: <\/b>As just stated, classical and Christian thought emphasized striving for virtue and the common good (the “high”). Liberalism shifted the focus to the “low” \u2013 the reliable pursuit of individual self-interest. This meant that politics was no longer about cultivating virtuous citizens but about managing individual desires and preventing conflict.<\/span>\n

    <\/span><\/li>\n

  2. Reframing virtue as oppression:<\/b> Classical and Christian traditions saw virtue, self-limitation, and self-rule as essential for human flourishing. Liberalism reframed these as sources of oppression, limiting individual freedom and autonomy.<\/span>\n

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  3. Embracing human control:<\/b> Francis Bacon championed the idea that humans could conquer nature and fulfill their desires through science and technology. This overturned the Stoic and Christian emphasis on acceptance and limits, fueling the belief in limitless human potential and progress.<\/span>
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    Redefining Liberty<\/b>
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    Building on these revolutions, liberalism redefined liberty as:<\/span>
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