As a libertarian, I don’t advocate for social legislation and I think doing so undermines limited government. That doesn’t mean I don’t actually have social values. The beauty of liberty, however, is that it creates social good without social legislation. Liberty comes with responsibility. In a free society, liberty and responsibility go hand in hand because there are no moral hazards created by illusory safety nets or the artificial disconnection between actions and natural consequences. In a free system, experiencing the consequences of one’s actions gives rise to a stable, just and productive society with human relationships and mutually beneficial bonds at its heart.
I think it is reasonable to claim that the history of the United States through the mid-20th century demonstrates this principle. I don’t think the culture here was perfect then – I certainly would have been miserable with the economic and social limitations my mother experienced – but I would say in net we have traded a strong and virtuous culture for a less rigid but also less valuable one. Specifically, we seem to be losing the legacy of our industrious past and are losing sight of the connection between behavior and outcome.
