The Power of the Individual

The United States was once called “the Land of Opportunity” because any one person could leave the Old World and journey across the ocean to make something of himself. In the Old World, someone’s status remained stagnant throughout his life. The opportunity in the United States allowed an individual to succeed without respect to where he was born or from which class he came. The power of the individual and the success it brings is what created the American Dream. 

Unfortunately, the focus of the American Dream is not the opportunity to make anything of yourself, but what the average American feels that they are entitled to have. A house, a reliable car, 2.2 kids, and a six-figure salary are not guarantees for every American because they are Americans. These things must be earned by the person who wants them be it through an invention, a small business, climbing the corporate ladder, or whatever he sees fit to succeed. If someone else wants to take a different path to success, he is more than welcome, but I will not stand in the way of his success and I do not expect him to stand in mine.

As a Conservative, I believe that the American Dream should not come from government. Government can make things more difficult for the individual by getting in the way. A smaller government gives you more control over your life. To quote former president Gerald Ford, “A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have.”  You cannot guarantee that government will make the same decisions regarding your family that you would. Giving up that freedom prevents you from being an individual.

Being an individual enables you to take your own way in life. You can choose not to take the advice given to you by your peers. No one should force you to make up your mind. Your mind is your property and no one has the right to your ideas. You are allowed to weigh both sides of an argument and choose accordingly. Life is a Choose Your Own Adventure book, except that we cannot skip a bunch of pages and see if we fall into the pit of despair. The uncertainty of success makes life all that more enjoyable. It would not be nearly as rewarding if you had someone preventing you from going your own way.

Where we end up in life is up to us. Each one of us was given talents, and we must learn to use these talents to the best of our ability. Unfortunately, each person’s ability is not the same. Ability is another attribute that makes them an individual. The Left is the champion of diversity and does not think that people should be evaluated on their ability alone. Affirmative Action uses race to give preferential treatment to college applicants. 

The Ricci v. DeStefano Supreme Court case dealt with a promotion exam for New Haven firefighters. It was said that the test was unfair because the race of those that passed the exam was not representative of the community. The test was designed for those with the best ability to pass the exam, and therefore, those who passed the test should deserve a promotion. The people that passed the test should have received a promotion because they have earned it. Liberals sided with the minorities because it looked to them like the test discriminated against them based on their race. Conservatives sided with the firefighters because throwing out the test discriminated against the ability of those who passed the exam.

When we move to a society where ability is king, there will be winners and losers. We are not the same in that regard. Life will never be fair. Others may use their ability to cheat you of an opportunity. Through income taxes, the government will cheat you out of the money you have earned from a job. Fairness has been distorted to mean that every person should be allowed to have the same amount of something. The Fairness Doctrine tried to give equal time to Liberal and Conservative talk shows on the radio. Liberals say it is unfair to oil companies to make “windfall” profits. They have decided that they need to tax those that make too much money. The idea of fairness should return to its roots. To be fair is to give to everybody what he has earned, not what he needs.