Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Freedom, Mercy, Kindness, and Truth

Understanding politics is difficult because words have double meanings. Let me give you an example of a few.

Freedom can mean (A) ability and opportunity to choose or
(B) Freedom from consequences

Mercy should be given by (A) the individual through voluntary gifts or
(B) the state through forced redistribution of the wealth

Kindness can mean (A) telling a person what he wants to hear or
(B) telling a person what he needs to hear

Truth (A) changes with each individual or
(B) is the knowledge of the past, present, and future.
Of course with the second definition of truth, no one knows all truth. The definition simply alludes to the fact that the truth does exist and suggests that we should find it.

How is it found? The only clue was Jesus who said: "By their fruits ye shall know them" which I take to mean that consequences and reason can guide us in finding good public policy. A keen understanding of history is essential in this quest. If politicians cannot back up their policies with historical examples, I would beware of such a person and his policies.

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