All efforts to detach economic issues from social issues will fail. They cannot be divided. In the “Filed Reports” tab on this website’s homepage, the first report listed is this one: On the Connection Between the Economic and Social Issues. Because some economic conservatives and many libertarians seem confused about the fact that all the issues are connected, I began gathering articles and writing on the topic a number of years ago.
In a nutshell, the social science is overwhelming — the natural family is the building block for civilization. This fact isn’t new. Even Caesar in first century BC understood it. Good luck limiting government and protecting individual liberty when the family begins to break down.
Below are excerpts from two recent posts that are on topic — first up is by Josh Sabey writing at The Federalist — here is the title and subtitle of his article:
‘Privilege’ Is Just Another Word For Family, And We Need More Of It
‘Privilege’ is just another term for strong family ties. That means we’ll serve more people by expanding privilege rather than by destroying it.
In the piece, Sabey writes:
Privilege is the reality that people don’t normally succeed alone, and not usually on their first try. People succeed because they get help—because someone at some point tips the scale.
But what is the mechanism for this? Who are the people responsible for inequitable treatment? I think when it comes down to it, when we talk about privilege, we are usually talking about parents who try to help their children succeed. They provide safe homes, teach their children social skills, ingratiate them with valuable connections, and submerge them in a culture in which they will learn how to get to and through college, and into the workplace. Of course, it’s more than a one generation phenomena. Parents are enabled to privilege their children in part because of the privileges they themselves have received. Privilege moves from parent to child from generation to generation. And the web gets very thick. But at its heart, privilege is family.
You can read the entire article at The Federalist.
Next up is Eric Metaxas, celebrating Marriage Week:
Take a Stand for Marriage
They say Rome wasn’t built in a day, but you can do something to help rebuild marriage in just one week!It’s almost become a cliché to say that marriage is under attack in America. But the trends and statistics are undeniable. Here are some data points:
Marriage rates: In 1970, eighty percent of all adults were married; today it’s only 52 percent. In 1960, the median age for a first marriage was 20 for women and 23 for men. Today it’s 27 for women and 29 for men.
Millennials: A full 25 percent of Millennials are likely to forego marriage altogether. One report says that a record share of Millennials will remain unmarried through age 40.
That Christians are concerned about the institution of marriage is nothing new. But when leading cultural gatekeepers catch on, it’s eye-opening. Sam Sturgeon, president of Demographic Intelligence, says bluntly that the United States has been experiencing a “cultural retreat from marriage.”
Read more: Breakpoint
Image credit: Nina Buday / Shutterstock.
