Ron Paul's Vision of a Virtuous and Moral People: Not Sexual Behavior, But Attitudes Towar

[sailingaway]

Ron Paul's Vision of a Virtuous and Moral People: Not Sexual Behavior, But Attitudes Toward Force and Violence

http://reason.com/blog/2012/11/15/ron-pauls-vision-of-a-virtuous-and-moral

[JohnM]

What I’m talking about is a system of government guided by the moral principles of peace and tolerance.

The Founders were convinced that a free society could not exist without a moral people. Just writing rules won’t work if the people choose to ignore them. Today the rule of law written in the Constitution has little meaning for most Americans, especially those who work in Washington DC.

Benjamin Franklin claimed “only a virtuous people are capable of freedom.” John Adams concurred: “Our Constitution was made for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

A moral people must reject all violence in an effort to mold people’s beliefs or habits.

A society that boos or ridicules the Golden Rule is not a moral society. All great religions endorse the Golden Rule. The same moral standards that individuals are required to follow should apply to all government officials. They cannot be exempt.

The ultimate solution is not in the hands of the government.

The solution falls on each and every individual, with guidance from family, friends and community.

The #1 responsibility for each of us is to change ourselves with hope that others will follow. This is of greater importance than working on changing the government; that is secondary to promoting a virtuous society. If we can achieve this, then the government will change.

It doesn’t mean that political action or holding office has no value. At times it does nudge policy in the right direction. But what is true is that when seeking office is done for personal aggrandizement, money or power, it becomes useless if not harmful. When political action is taken for the right reasons it’s easy to understand why compromise should be avoided. It also becomes clear why progress is best achieved by working with coalitions, which bring people together, without anyone sacrificing his principles.

Political action, to be truly beneficial, must be directed toward changing the hearts and minds of the people, recognizing that it’s the virtue and morality of the people that allow liberty to flourish.

The Constitution or more laws per se, have no value if the people’s attitudes aren’t changed.

To achieve liberty and peace, two powerful human emotions have to be overcome. Number one is “envy” which leads to hate and class warfare. Number two is “intolerance” which leads to bigoted and judgmental policies. These emotions must be replaced with a much better understanding of love, compassion, tolerance and free market economics.

It seems to me that (at least in that speech) the personal virtues that Dr Paul is espousing are lack of envy, and tolerance.


But he also seems to be speaking about political virtue - and the political virtue that, above all, he seems to be advocating is non-aggression.

In other words, when Ron Paul speaks of being virtuous and moral, he is not so much speaking about attitudes to war, as attitudes to coercion and compulsion.


By the way, I had difficulty not smiling at the way the last sentence in that quote ends. I guess very few people, hearing the words "love, compassion and tolerance" guessed what was coming next. :D

[sailingaway]

...
By the way, I had difficulty not smiling at the way the last sentence in that quote ends. I guess very few people, hearing the words "love, compassion and tolerance" guessed what was coming next. :D

I did too, but it is quintessentially Ron Paul.