Decades of anti-family policy in the United States has resulted in declining marriage rates and the breakdown of the family. This should be very concerning to us. The cause of this collapse needs to be examined, so that we can understand the effects of this policy on society and culture generally.
Over the last century and half there has been a substantial decline in marriage rates which is problematic for a number of reasons. Pope John Paul II reminds us in Apostolicam Actuositatem that the family is "the first and vital cell of society", after all, families are where children should learn to become citizens and form agency which guides them the rest of their lives. The alarming decline of women who marry is indicative of not only changing societal attitudes but misguided public policy. Decades of introducing new government assistance programs has negatively shifted incentives and public opinion on the importance of marriage, especially with the advent of the welfare state and anti-family tax laws.
This general decline has disproportionately affected Hispanic and African-American women. The largest decline of marriage rates for vulnerable groups coincides with the establishment of "The Great Society" which disincentivizes marriage through government support programs. This presents a few pressing questions such as why do politicians possess such variation in their visions regarding the role of government in society, and why do those with good intentions endorse policy with such poor results?
Regardless of geographic location, leaders and citizens of a nation have significant variations of opinions on how society should function, and in what manner. Dr. Thomas Sowell explores this variation in A Conflict of Visions; Ideological Origins of Political Struggles by dichotomizing these societal visions into two broad categories; the constrained and the unconstrained vision. He illustrates how well-meaning people arrive at largely different conclusions for policy in society even if they have similar goals.
Over the last century and half there has been a substantial decline in marriage rates which is problematic for a number of reasons. Pope John Paul II reminds us in Apostolicam Actuositatem that the family is "the first and vital cell of society", after all, families are where children should learn to become citizens and form agency which guides them the rest of their lives. The alarming decline of women who marry is indicative of not only changing societal attitudes but misguided public policy. Decades of introducing new government assistance programs has negatively shifted incentives and public opinion on the importance of marriage, especially with the advent of the welfare state and anti-family tax laws.
This general decline has disproportionately affected Hispanic and African-American women. The largest decline of marriage rates for vulnerable groups coincides with the establishment of "The Great Society" which disincentivizes marriage through government support programs. This presents a few pressing questions such as why do politicians possess such variation in their visions regarding the role of government in society, and why do those with good intentions endorse policy with such poor results?
Regardless of geographic location, leaders and citizens of a nation have significant variations of opinions on how society should function, and in what manner. Dr. Thomas Sowell explores this variation in A Conflict of Visions; Ideological Origins of Political Struggles by dichotomizing these societal visions into two broad categories; the constrained and the unconstrained vision. He illustrates how well-meaning people arrive at largely different conclusions for policy in society even if they have similar goals.
The unconstrained vision is characterized by valuing rationality and expert knowledge above all else, in contrast to systematic knowledge and individualistic choice in the constrained vision. The unconstrained vision also believes that society can be guided to an ultimate goal, or that the human condition is perfectible. The French Revolution is often cited by Sowell as the archetype for the unconstrained vision in which those intellectuals who spoke 'on behalf of the people' were given the powers of life and death over their counterparts.
Although there are many dangers in the unconstrained vision, what is most concerning is the disregard for the family and the public policy that results from this viewpoint. William Godwin, a champion of the unconstrained vision, argued that we fundamentally restrict the effect of knowledge on future actions if we bind ourselves today.
"To those with the unconstrained vision, this means that being bound by past decision represents a loss of benefits made possible by later knowledge. Being bound by past decisions, whether in constitutional law cases or in marriage for life, is seen as costly and irrational"-A Conflict of Visions, pg. 79
Those who believe marriage is irrational largely misunderstand temporal praxeology and the relationship that families play in society as a whole. Focusing solely on remaining flexible in future actions necessarily wastes precious resources, such as time and youth, in a world of uncertainty.
People only act to remove expected uneasiness or improve their situation in the future, so all action must be directed forward as the present and past are largely irrelevant to considerations of action. It is also worth noting that all time is not homogeneous as we have a strong preference to sooner rather than later. This temporal sequencing helps to illustrate that time is scarce and people must economize their time much like any other finite resource. Ludwig von Mises in Human Action details the difference between temporal economization and economization of consumer goods;
Both Mises and his similarly prolific protege Friedrich Hayek saw families as having a vital role in a market economy and a flourishing society. Hayek in his work The Fatal Conceit expresses his belief that we live in two worlds simultaneously; small intimate groups or firms and then larger markets in 'the great society' (not to be confused with government policy of the same name mentioned earlier). In the small groups there is highly localized knowledge and decentralized decision-making between familiar individuals, whereas in the great society large markets allow for anonymity. In smaller groups Hayek, along the same lines as Adam Smith, believed that self interests could be extended to those immediately surrounding us. These small groups allow for altruism that is not possible in larger markets, largely due to the higher costs of acquiring knowledge on other actors. Hayek echoes this in Individualism: True or False where he suggests that we can't know more than a small fraction of society and that we act on the knowledge of those that are immediately surrounding us. This is important as families bridge the gap between the two 'different worlds'. Families are the most efficient way to allow for both tacit and explicit learning that is required to be an actor in larger market places. Families are where we learn social cues and develop heuristics to help us succeed. Granted, this learning can take place outside the family, but who has a stronger incentive than a parent to instruct a child? What bureaucrat has more relevant knowledge to transform you into a productive member of the community in which you are born? This combination of regional experiences and highly decentralized systematic knowledge is critical and the former should be cautious not to crowd out the latter. A healthy balance of student, state, and family is essential for a highly diverse population to coordinate action and allow for individual autonomy.
Many who hold the unconstrained vision of the world do so with all the best intentions. Problematically no mix of experts can lead us to a societal goal. It is extremely difficult to identify and pursue such a goal while simultaneously allowing individuals the freedom to pursue their own ends. Many with the unconstrained vision seem to fundamentally misunderstand the need to prioritize the immediate future and families rather than delaying decisions until we feel we have all the knowledge, as ultimately we fail to economize time in an efficient manner. Lastly, the impact of the family is largely ignored in regard to its role in social cohesion. This disregard and disintegration of such an important institution is nothing but a stepping stone to socialism, as well as government paternalism, and should not be tolerated any longer.
"The economization of time has a peculiar character because of the uniqueness and irreversibility of the temporal order. The importance of these facts manifests itself in every part of the theory of action...The economization of time is independent of the economization of economic goods and services." Human Action, Part 1 pg. 101If we continually delay action (marriage for instance) in hopes of later knowledge leading to better outcomes we inherently sacrifice time and youth. In the unconstrained vision marriage and family are nothing but weights that drag us down, although this is not the case, as families are of vital importance for a healthy society. Mises warned of socialist propaganda that promised a sexual utopia that would cause marriage to disappear along with private property as socialism pledged not only wealth for all but universal happiness in love.
Both Mises and his similarly prolific protege Friedrich Hayek saw families as having a vital role in a market economy and a flourishing society. Hayek in his work The Fatal Conceit expresses his belief that we live in two worlds simultaneously; small intimate groups or firms and then larger markets in 'the great society' (not to be confused with government policy of the same name mentioned earlier). In the small groups there is highly localized knowledge and decentralized decision-making between familiar individuals, whereas in the great society large markets allow for anonymity. In smaller groups Hayek, along the same lines as Adam Smith, believed that self interests could be extended to those immediately surrounding us. These small groups allow for altruism that is not possible in larger markets, largely due to the higher costs of acquiring knowledge on other actors. Hayek echoes this in Individualism: True or False where he suggests that we can't know more than a small fraction of society and that we act on the knowledge of those that are immediately surrounding us. This is important as families bridge the gap between the two 'different worlds'. Families are the most efficient way to allow for both tacit and explicit learning that is required to be an actor in larger market places. Families are where we learn social cues and develop heuristics to help us succeed. Granted, this learning can take place outside the family, but who has a stronger incentive than a parent to instruct a child? What bureaucrat has more relevant knowledge to transform you into a productive member of the community in which you are born? This combination of regional experiences and highly decentralized systematic knowledge is critical and the former should be cautious not to crowd out the latter. A healthy balance of student, state, and family is essential for a highly diverse population to coordinate action and allow for individual autonomy.
Many who hold the unconstrained vision of the world do so with all the best intentions. Problematically no mix of experts can lead us to a societal goal. It is extremely difficult to identify and pursue such a goal while simultaneously allowing individuals the freedom to pursue their own ends. Many with the unconstrained vision seem to fundamentally misunderstand the need to prioritize the immediate future and families rather than delaying decisions until we feel we have all the knowledge, as ultimately we fail to economize time in an efficient manner. Lastly, the impact of the family is largely ignored in regard to its role in social cohesion. This disregard and disintegration of such an important institution is nothing but a stepping stone to socialism, as well as government paternalism, and should not be tolerated any longer.
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