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by jon l. shebel, publisher
In The Winds That Blow
With the collapse of economies around the globe, pundits are predicting the end of
capitalism. But the failure has not been one of capitalism. And it has been just as much a
political miscarriage as an economic one.
Much of the Clinton Administration’s foreign policy has been trade-based, in the
belief that democracy flows from capitalism. And sometimes that is true--to a point. The
freedom to succeed in a free market makes citizens less likely to succumb to the
blandishments of autocrats. But the opportunity to succeed in a free market diminishes
without the existence of political instruments such as rule of law, private property
rights, and inviolability of contracts. Freedom nurtures prosperity and vice versa.
And because democracy and free markets depend upon accountability, they do more to
nurture morality than any other political or economic system. They also demand the
engagement of the citizens to defend that accountability. That’s why so much of our
political discourse since the first settlers set foot on these shores has been about
virtue, or what we today call values.
That’s also why, especially with government, how things get done is just as
important as what gets done. When those who hold positions of power in government bend the
rules or cut corners to reach their objectives, they do more harm than any private
individual or corporation because they are striking at the very heart of the bond that
makes it possible for us to live together in liberty.
Over the last four years, the top leaders of this state, other states, and this nation
have seen fit to bend the rules and cut corners so that they could "get Big
Tobacco." No matter the means, we were promised, they were justified because it was
all being done on behalf of the children.
But, we were also promised, the rest of us were safe because tobacco was
"unique." Don’t believe it for a second. Once erected, this mechanism for a
huge power and money grab won’t be easily dismantled. As you’ll read in this
month’s story, Whither Tobacco, ominous rumblings emanating from Big Government, Big
Law, and Big Public Health presage the next assault on the political and economic freedom
of the business community. Once again, it will all be done for the children.
In the movie, A Man For All Seasons, the great English statesman and lawyer Sir
Thomas More debates with his son-in-law over the sanctity of the law. When the son-in-law
says he’d "cut down every law in England" to vanquish evil, More
remonstrates, "And when the last law was down and the devil turned around on you,
where would you hide?"
Then he continues, "This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast,
man’s laws, not God’s, and if you cut them down ... do you really think you
could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I’d give the devil the
benefit of law for my own safety’s sake."
Sir Thomas More’s defense of the law cost him his life. Chances are, we won’t
be asked to make a similar sacrifice. All we need do is stand firm against those who would
cut down the laws to achieve this or that "worthy" outcome. Because once those
laws are cut down, they will not so easily be made to stand upright again.
Jon L. Shebel is president & CEO of Associated Industries of Florida and
affiliated companies.
Nov/Dec 1998 -- Florida Business Insight, PO Box 784, Tallahassee, Fl 32302
(850)224-7173, insight@aif.com |
