Here Lies Natural Law - R.I.P.
I’m writing this column au natural.
Oh, relax. I don’t mean naked. Although it’s hot enough these days to warrant it. I mean that, as I write this, I am living under the same roof as my wife and children. We actually have a functioning ‘natural’ family unit. I get to kiss my kids good-morning and good-night every day and sleep in the same house. Surely there is no love more encompassing or more ‘natural’ than the love of a dad for his kids. None more than mine at least.
Without a doubt, the ‘natural’ family unit – one man, one woman and their children - is the most elegant, efficient, successful, and totally ‘natural’ social creation in the history of mankind.
Have I used the word ‘natural’ enough yet? Four times in two short paragraphs. Redundant? Maybe. But there’s a method to my dadness. I’m just setting you up for this week’s tirade on the subject of ‘Natural law’.
‘Natural Law” is a term that refers to the laws of ‘nature’. You know, the laws that govern how we exist in the natural universe. In ancient Rome, ‘natural law’ meant the instincts and emotions of humans and animals – instincts such as procreation, self preservation and the love we feel for our offspring. (Please note: there is no mention of government or government programs there. Government is NOT natural. Unlike the natural family, government is a cold, unnatural, artificial and temporary social construct.)
If I had to provide a scenario showing how natural law applies to the human race, I would do it like this: ‘One man and one woman form a life-long monogamous relationship. They have children. They raise their children in their family unit. They impart their values, ethics and principles to their children. They care for their aging parents. Their kids grow up, find mates and form their own family units. The kids nurture their children and care for their aging parents. The cycle continues in this way. And so on and so forth.’
From the beginning of time, the sanctity of the family unit as enshrined in ‘Natural Law’ was all that stood between us and oblivion. It sustained us. It is, irrefutably, the very reason we have survived as a species. Unlike some animals, humans are totally helpless for a long time after birth. Throughout the ages, if human babies did not have a parent to remain with and nurture them and another parent to protect and provide for them, they would not have survived. It's the same with old people. They depended on their children to help and support them as they aged and died.
Anyway, as we all know, these days here in Canada it’s a heckuvalot different. The family is slowly being replaced by government as the most important institution in our society. And the natural cycle of life – the truth of natural law – is being cast aside by a generation of selfish, narcisstic humanists and misguided, state-worshipping socialists.
We shouldn’t be too hard on them, though. Lets face it, Natural law is a drag. It actually requires disclipline, self-sacrifice and an adherence to a shared set of societal values. Yuck. On the other hand, our benevolent Canadian government asks nothing. No sacrifice or discipline is required. In fact, the less you do for yourself the more the state will do for you. The more irresponsible you are, the more responsibility the state will take for your life. The fewer pesky morals, ethics and principles you adhere to, the more you will need to go begging to the state for help and the more of your soul the state will own.
It’s a religion, really. What Jesus is to Catholics, government is to humanistic socialists.
Unlike the natural family, whose sole purpose is to raise children to be independent, responsible, well balanced, self sufficient adults; the unnatural, artificially created Canadian state is quite happy if you remain dependant forever. It is the way it maintains power. If you require nothing of the state, it will, in the words of Marx, whither and die. It will grow weaker, smaller and less intrusive. The government knows this and preys on our vulnerability. Just look at Canada’s new national childcare program. The government does more, you do less and you become increasingly unable to survive without it. (Oh, by the way, I offer my apologies to socialists for using the words of Marx against you. But, lets face it, poetic justice is sweet.)
Most socialistic societies, like Canada, develop in the same way. The people always start off as the master and the government as the servant. But, as years pass, the roles become reversed and the servant becomes the master. Tell me, here in Canada, who is the master - the people or the government? Who depends on whom? Who crawls to whom? Who fears whom? Who is patronized by whom? Who is controlled by whom? Clearly, these days in Canada, the people are the ‘who’ and the government is the ‘whom’.
Freedom is power and power is control. However, there can be no freedom, power or control without personal responsibility. The more responsibility the government assumes over your life, the less freedom you have and, the more power and control the government has over you. Cause and effect!
Believe it or not, I actually have a point to make here, and it is this: after tens of thousands of years of success, the ‘Natural Law’ cycle seems to have broken down for a lot of people here in Canada and in much of the western world. These days we have little need for ‘Natural Law’. There is no need to cleave to the family in the interest of procreation or self preservation. After all, we now have our omnipotent, unnatural nanny-state to take care of us from cradle to grave. And, like pavement over grass, the government continues to spread while the natural family is slowly smothered underneath.
Someday, however, government will no longer be there to care for us. History shows that all governments fall. For us to think that our society, with its frail, pathological dependency on government, will be spared, is just plain foolish. In the end, the families that adhere to the principles of natural law and look inward for strength, rather than to government, will survive. Those who depend on government will fall with the governments they depend on. Maybe not tomorrow, but someday.
My kids are still young. And maybe, as they grow, they too will be swept up in the new-age Canadian socialist culture of government subservience. Maybe they will grow to love and depend on government, just as so many of their peers inevitably will. (Certainly, it is what they are being taught in school and through the media.) And this makes me fear for the future of my descendants. But, in the end, if they choose this path, it will not be because of me. It will be in spite of me. And in this, I can take some comfort. For, at least I tried to teach them the natural truth.
Oh, relax. I don’t mean naked. Although it’s hot enough these days to warrant it. I mean that, as I write this, I am living under the same roof as my wife and children. We actually have a functioning ‘natural’ family unit. I get to kiss my kids good-morning and good-night every day and sleep in the same house. Surely there is no love more encompassing or more ‘natural’ than the love of a dad for his kids. None more than mine at least.
Without a doubt, the ‘natural’ family unit – one man, one woman and their children - is the most elegant, efficient, successful, and totally ‘natural’ social creation in the history of mankind.
Have I used the word ‘natural’ enough yet? Four times in two short paragraphs. Redundant? Maybe. But there’s a method to my dadness. I’m just setting you up for this week’s tirade on the subject of ‘Natural law’.
‘Natural Law” is a term that refers to the laws of ‘nature’. You know, the laws that govern how we exist in the natural universe. In ancient Rome, ‘natural law’ meant the instincts and emotions of humans and animals – instincts such as procreation, self preservation and the love we feel for our offspring. (Please note: there is no mention of government or government programs there. Government is NOT natural. Unlike the natural family, government is a cold, unnatural, artificial and temporary social construct.)
If I had to provide a scenario showing how natural law applies to the human race, I would do it like this: ‘One man and one woman form a life-long monogamous relationship. They have children. They raise their children in their family unit. They impart their values, ethics and principles to their children. They care for their aging parents. Their kids grow up, find mates and form their own family units. The kids nurture their children and care for their aging parents. The cycle continues in this way. And so on and so forth.’
From the beginning of time, the sanctity of the family unit as enshrined in ‘Natural Law’ was all that stood between us and oblivion. It sustained us. It is, irrefutably, the very reason we have survived as a species. Unlike some animals, humans are totally helpless for a long time after birth. Throughout the ages, if human babies did not have a parent to remain with and nurture them and another parent to protect and provide for them, they would not have survived. It's the same with old people. They depended on their children to help and support them as they aged and died.
Anyway, as we all know, these days here in Canada it’s a heckuvalot different. The family is slowly being replaced by government as the most important institution in our society. And the natural cycle of life – the truth of natural law – is being cast aside by a generation of selfish, narcisstic humanists and misguided, state-worshipping socialists.
We shouldn’t be too hard on them, though. Lets face it, Natural law is a drag. It actually requires disclipline, self-sacrifice and an adherence to a shared set of societal values. Yuck. On the other hand, our benevolent Canadian government asks nothing. No sacrifice or discipline is required. In fact, the less you do for yourself the more the state will do for you. The more irresponsible you are, the more responsibility the state will take for your life. The fewer pesky morals, ethics and principles you adhere to, the more you will need to go begging to the state for help and the more of your soul the state will own.
It’s a religion, really. What Jesus is to Catholics, government is to humanistic socialists.
Unlike the natural family, whose sole purpose is to raise children to be independent, responsible, well balanced, self sufficient adults; the unnatural, artificially created Canadian state is quite happy if you remain dependant forever. It is the way it maintains power. If you require nothing of the state, it will, in the words of Marx, whither and die. It will grow weaker, smaller and less intrusive. The government knows this and preys on our vulnerability. Just look at Canada’s new national childcare program. The government does more, you do less and you become increasingly unable to survive without it. (Oh, by the way, I offer my apologies to socialists for using the words of Marx against you. But, lets face it, poetic justice is sweet.)
Most socialistic societies, like Canada, develop in the same way. The people always start off as the master and the government as the servant. But, as years pass, the roles become reversed and the servant becomes the master. Tell me, here in Canada, who is the master - the people or the government? Who depends on whom? Who crawls to whom? Who fears whom? Who is patronized by whom? Who is controlled by whom? Clearly, these days in Canada, the people are the ‘who’ and the government is the ‘whom’.
Freedom is power and power is control. However, there can be no freedom, power or control without personal responsibility. The more responsibility the government assumes over your life, the less freedom you have and, the more power and control the government has over you. Cause and effect!
Believe it or not, I actually have a point to make here, and it is this: after tens of thousands of years of success, the ‘Natural Law’ cycle seems to have broken down for a lot of people here in Canada and in much of the western world. These days we have little need for ‘Natural Law’. There is no need to cleave to the family in the interest of procreation or self preservation. After all, we now have our omnipotent, unnatural nanny-state to take care of us from cradle to grave. And, like pavement over grass, the government continues to spread while the natural family is slowly smothered underneath.
Someday, however, government will no longer be there to care for us. History shows that all governments fall. For us to think that our society, with its frail, pathological dependency on government, will be spared, is just plain foolish. In the end, the families that adhere to the principles of natural law and look inward for strength, rather than to government, will survive. Those who depend on government will fall with the governments they depend on. Maybe not tomorrow, but someday.
My kids are still young. And maybe, as they grow, they too will be swept up in the new-age Canadian socialist culture of government subservience. Maybe they will grow to love and depend on government, just as so many of their peers inevitably will. (Certainly, it is what they are being taught in school and through the media.) And this makes me fear for the future of my descendants. But, in the end, if they choose this path, it will not be because of me. It will be in spite of me. And in this, I can take some comfort. For, at least I tried to teach them the natural truth.
1 Comments:
What an excellent analysis. You're bang on.
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