Thursday, July 12, 2018

Why Good Fences Make Good Neighbors

“Something there is that doesn’t love a wall,” wrote poet Robert Frost. In the opening line to his famous poem, “Mending Wall,” Frost explores one of the mysteries of fallen human nature. Everyone feels both a need and aversion for order. His questioning of the role of walls tries to explain this contradiction.
Exercising the simple task of mending a stone wall on his farm, the poet works with his neighbor to repair the damages of time and weather that have thrown down stones from the barrier. He surveys the work of hunters who have created gaps by ferreting out hidden rabbits. The stone wall has breaches that “even two can pass abreast.”

Frost’s consideration of the stone fence can shed some light on the troubles on the American border. Truly “something there is that doesn’t love a wall.” There is a violent urge “that wants it down,” Frost declares with emphasis. There is a hidden sympathy for letting things run down, while there is a suspicion that order is needed.
The Nature of Borders
In the present debate about the border, there is something of Frost’s dilemma. A good part of the squabble about a border wall is not about the size and shape of an eventual barrier to bar those entering illegally.
The liberal rage against the wall has much to do with the nature of boundaries. Indeed, walls, borders and fences are manifestations of restraint. They indicate that there are differences between things on one side and the other. Limits affirm that some things are better left separate to keep the peace. Boundaries secure the property of individuals against those who have none. They protect the sovereignty of nations against those who might enter without permission or do them harm.
Thus, walls are not loved, because walls say “no.” Many mistakenly believe that any saying of “no” is hurtful and causes people to suffer. And so, radicals claim, fences must be eliminated; they are not inclusive. The earth belongs to everyone. Walls must come crashing down.
A Rousseauian Perspective
Thus, borders and walls have always had enemies that are ready to take them down.
Such is the case of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who already in the eighteenth century, promoted an anti-wall outlook. The famous French philosopher affirmed that “The first person who, having fenced off a plot of ground, and took it into his head to say this is mine and found people simple enough to believe him was the true founder of civil society.”
Rousseau further speculates saying “What crimes, wars, murders, what miseries and horrors would the human race have been spared by someone who, uprooting the stakes or filling in the ditch, had shouted to his fellowmen: Beware of listening to this imposter: you are lost if you forget that the fruits belong to all and the earth to no one!
Rousseau’s dramatic screed contains a major error that contrasts with the teachings of the Church and the experience of reality.
The Earth Is Made to Be Shared by All
The great error is the affirmation that the earth belongs to no one. Radicals might be surprised to learn that the Church teaches that the earth was made to be shared by all.
However, natural Law does not give rules about how the earth is to be shared. That was left to human reason. Thus, Saint Thomas Aquinas teaches: “Community of goods is ascribed to the natural law, not that the natural law dictates that all things should be possessed in common and that nothing should be possessed as one’s own: but because the division of possessions is not according to the natural law, but rather arose from human agreement which belongs to positive law, as stated above (Q 57, Arts 2,3). Hence the ownership of possessions is not contrary to the natural law, but an addition thereto devised by human reason.”
Thus, the antipathy for walls has some foundation in reality. Were there no sin or disorder, all mankind would live together harmoniously without boundaries.
However, the sad reality of experience is that disorder and sin do exist no matter how much the world tries to suppress them. Fallen humanity naturally resists the restraints of order that keep the unbridled passions under control. Walls are needed to keep the peace.
Keeping Peace and Harmony
Although the earth was made to be shared by all, fallen nature calls for private property, so that by caring for that which is strictly one’s own, peace and harmony of society are preserved. It is well known that what is common to all is often cared for by none. For as Aristotle points out if property is commonly owned, “complaints are bound to arise between those who enjoy or take much but work little and those who take less but work more.”
Justice thus demands that there be property and the walls that secure it. Saint Thomas Aquinas further observes that “quarrels arise more frequently when there is no division of the things possessed.”
These divisions that take the form of fences or walls are therefore needed to preserve harmony and prosperity. When individuals clearly know what belongs to them, they will make the most efficient use of their own resources. They will see themselves adequately compensated for their efforts. Everyone benefits from this division. Christian charity becomes possible since people possess that which can be given to others.
Thus, Saint Albert the Great affirms that “everybody is by nature inclined to pay more attention to what is his own than to what is common; so that if this will be better cultivated it will also grow to good fruition where all are concerned.”
The proper Christian concept of property with walls facilitates the well-being of a world shared by all. It avoids the savagery of Rousseau’s hellish world without fences where “the fruits belong to all and the earth to no one!”
Constant Mending
Returning to Frost’s poem, it is not enough that there be walls. They must also be periodically mended. It takes continuous effort to define those limits that separate farmers and farms. Unrepaired walls can also lead to quarrels and disputes. When borders become unclear, they can quickly degenerate into ambiguous situations that the same fallen human nature exploits to disturb the peace.
Even when harmony appears to reign, mended walls are needed. Frost playfully asks his neighbor what they are “walling in or walling out.” Frost observes that “my apple trees will never get across and eat the cones under his pines.”
To which the neighbor replies: “Good fences make good neighbors.” It is his age-old acknowledgment of fallen nature. He does not understand the theology of Original Sin or desire “to go behind his father’s saying.” He merely repeats the tradition handed down to him.
Likewise, so many do not understand the need for limits and restraint. They want to tear down walls because they say “no.” Those who defend order are like the neighbor who repeats axioms from time immemorial without understanding why saying “no” is essential.
They need to understand that walls exist because sin and disorder exist. People must overcome the mysterious attraction for disorder that haunts fallen humanity. Only by constantly restraining the unbridled passions can earth escape the Rousseauian hell.
Indeed, “something there is that doesn’t love a wall.” However, the alternatives without walls are much too disastrous to contemplate. It is far better to mend walls and make good neighbors than to take the descending road to a new barbarity.






Why Good Fences Make Good Neighbors - Return to Order: Frost’s consideration of the stone fence can shed light on the troubles on the urge “that wants it down,” but also the sympathy for the order it brings.

Tuesday, July 3, 2018

Why Society Needs to Cultivate a True Elite Class


There was a time when the nation was ruled by a group of people that set the course for the country. Their children usually followed in their footsteps. This group of people tended to consolidate their wealth and pass it along to future generations. They formed what has been called a social elite—one that possessed complex connections within society, a network of civil obligations, and many leadership commitments.
Like all things human, this social arrangement of leaders had its defects. No one can deny this fact. But neither can one contest the historic reality that this system did help usher in an era of American prosperity with a certain amount of social mobility, stability and national unity.

In the post-World War II period, this system was largely replaced by a meritocracy, based on personal talent. The new system sought to level all advantages of birth. It emphasized individual achievement and not contribution to society. It stressed intelligence not character.
A Social Revolution Turns Everything Upside Down
To effect this change, many social structures were changed. The university system was opened up to everyone. During the sixties, social conventions were turned upside down, and sexual mores were thrashed everywhere. Extreme individualism became the norm. All this was done in the name of social justice, personal fulfillment and equality.
This social revolution was supposed to create a more just society. And yet, the contrary happened. The social order has not improved. Inequality ratios have soared. Morality has plummeted and created an underclass of those without stable family life. Institutional and civic involvement has declined dramatically. Social trust at all levels has fallen. Government is dysfunctional, and the nation is polarized.
The Rise of New Elites
Instead of the old group of social elites, the nation is now run by a new group of meritocratic elites. Their children are now following in their footsteps. They also tend to consolidate and concentrate their wealth and pass it along.
Thus, the new social justice warriors are back on the warpath demanding the destruction of these new elites simply because they are elites.
They do not realize that all healthy societies must have elites. Destroying elites in a society will eventually lead to the forming of another set of elites. This is because there will always be those in society who take upon themselves the task of leading and directing affairs. There will always be a one percent, a top ten percent in any society. Taking out these top percentages will only give their place to others, usually less qualified.
Eliminating layers of elites is also the way to totalitarian governments, which insist upon absolute power.
Cultivating True Elites
The real issue is not eliminating but cultivating true elites who will fully carry out their proper role in society. The problem with the present elites is that they do not know how to carry out these obligations. The present model has created what Charles Murray calls “hollow elites” who have “abdicated their responsibility to set and promulgate the standards,” while keeping the benefits of their social status.
Unlike former elites, today’s new elites have fewer social or civic obligations; they are not compelled to be role models or set standards. The meritocratic elites are content to live separately in their gated communities, insulated from those outside.
They can still be called elites since they do assume some responsibility for directing society and industry. They have however lost the notion of what their proper role is. They do not know how to be true elites.
The problem is further complicated by a culture that has done everything to malign elites as exploiters of the people. Thus, many elites do not even wish to admit their status.
Not All Rich People Are Elites
If this is to be remedied, there are two main misconceptions about elites that need to be addressed.
The first misconception is the idea that being an elite simply means being rich. Thus, people become elites by the size of their bank accounts. They care only about themselves, ignoring the plight of the poor.
This idea of elites is entirely wrong. Such people are merely rich people. They play no major role in society beyond their contribution to the economy. They cannot be counted upon to act beyond their self-interest.
The Need for Representative Characters
Real elites are what sociologists call representative characters. They exist in all prosperous societies. They do not consist of rich people enjoying life. They are the movers and shakers who find fulfillment in seeking the common good. They are those who perceive the ideals, principles, and qualities that are desired and admired by a community or nation, and translate them into concrete programs of life and culture.
These representative figures serve to set the tone and harmonize society. They are embedded in the community and by their influence shape the demand, fashions, and trends of the day. By their devotion and self-sacrifice, they move society ahead toward excellence.
“Mankind would never have reached the present state of civilization without heroism and self-sacrifice on the part of an elite,” writes Ludwig von Mises. “Every step forward on the way toward an improvement of moral conditions has been an achievement of men who were ready to sacrifice their own well-being, their health, and their lives for the sake of a cause that they considered just and beneficial.”
Essential characteristics of elites have always been a notion of civic obligations, a spirit of sacrifice for community, and a celebration of civic virtue practiced in common. When elites are Christian, they will also have a great zeal for God, the Church and the practice of charity. These are obligations that are absent in the present meritocratic model centered in self-realization.
A Second Misconception
A second misconception about elites is that they are limited to those who are rich. Though wealth can be helpful in fulfilling their role, it is not essential.
Elites should exist at all levels of society, not just the highest ones. Elites can and do exist in small communities, occupations, schools and family groups. They are those who by their deeds, excellence or works, elevate the communities in which they are embedded. They need not have great wealth but do need great vision.
Such heroes, for that is what they are, are like leaven that rises without special planning or government intervention. These figures might include self-sacrificing clergy, devoted teachers, established farmers or selfless community leaders who draw and fuse society together and set the tone for their communities. They hold themselves up to high standards and commit themselves to being role models for those around them.
Shattered Unity and Common Purpose
American society today is coming apart. This is largely because, in the name of a leveling egalitarianism, so many of the social structures that held society together were discarded. Among these was the notion of true elites. In their place was put an individualistic model of achievement that shattered social unity and common purpose.
Many of the social ills that plague modern society are caused by the lack of elites. There is no one to harmonize society and provide vision and goals. Worst of all, modern culture discourages the idea of true and representative elites and proposes false and unrepresentative pseudo-elites who correspond to the worst and most selfish tendencies of a hedonistic culture.
Elites are not the problem. They will always exist, from among the highest to the lowest levels of society. The problem is cultivating true elites at all levels of society who can revitalize the culture and formulate a rich social life. This is especially true in times of crisis. Elites need to learn how to be elites again. And this will involve the enormous sacrifice of going beyond self-interest.


Why Society Needs to Cultivate a True Elite Class - ReturntoOrder.org