Liberals Believe Socialism, Communism Is The Ideal System
by Ken

There are many questions concerning the basic nature of mankind that are key to communication and understanding between different groups of people.  If my basic views are vastly different from yours, the words I use will suggest an image in your mind which I didn't intend.  When you respond to what I said, your words will likely convey an image which you did not intend.  The resulting confusion and frustration will lead to a breakdown of communication, and leave us both less inclined to try to talk to one another again.  Our basic world view will often not be clear and conscious, but rather be a vague set of impressions and feelings that we cannot articulate; importantly, however, that world view forms our meanings.   Political discussion is a type of communication where this is very obvious. When we discuss politics, religion, or any serious matter with others, we assume that words mean the same thing to them as they do to us.  That is highly unlikely if we are Conservative, and they are Liberal.

One of those fundamental questions is this: Are people, in their essential nature, character, thinking, and behavior capable of reaching total perfection?
The basis for the belief that humanity is perfectible is apparently rooted in the evolutionary model.  From that view, the origins of humanity are from non-living matter to simple life-forms to more and more complex ones, and from less intelligent, ethical, socialized, and functional creatures to creatures that are highly evolved.  Logically, if that view were accurate, humans, as the most advanced products of that evolution, would be first to reach the level of perfection.   I do not know of anyone who claims that our society has reached perfection, although it may be that some individuals feel that they have evolved to that Utopian state  In this writer's studied opinion, the total view of that process is too unclear and confusing to even be considered.  If perfection were attainable, what would the next stage be after perfection?  How would the perfect relate to the nearly  - but not yet - perfect?  Just making sense of the human evolution hypothesis is more than my limited human mind can achieve.

Using the evolutionary perfectible concept, we should be able to design social, economic, and governmental structures that are compatible with perfectible beings, and the Liberal believes that Socialism, Collectivism, Communism, Mutualism, Liberalism, or some system within that genre, is the ideal system for such beings.  It is not our intention to critique or analyze these systems here.  We are looking at the subject of communication with people who have these views. 

When a conservative talks to liberals with one or some combination of these views, and I say ”economic justice”, the liberal hears ”distribution or redistribution of wealth”, because they believe that perfect people should share equally in labor, the results of labor, and in property.  When a conservative refers to ”the rule of law”, the liberal  hears ”ignore rules and laws”, because perfected people should do as they please, and they will always be right.  When a conservative applies the standard of “true or false” to a statement, the liberal hears, “my words are always true, because they are appropriate to what I need at this time, and perfect people need not concern themselves with such outdated concepts as truth or fallacy”.  Considerations of morality are viewed under the same principles.  Since there are no rules, I cannot break any; it’s impossible to violate non-existent rules.

The application of the 'perfectible' concept of humans presents several logical and practical problems.  First, even if the evolutionary concept, with resulting perfection is valid, we cannot be perfect before we have evolved to that stage.  To try to act as perfect people before we are perfect, creates conflicts and impossibilities that we do not have the means of overcoming.  Second, the evolutionary dogma is that it takes millions of years for significant changes to take place.  If that is true, then we can expect to struggle along in this imperfect condition for millions of years, trying to act perfect when in fact we are flawed and imperfect.  Third, what are perfect people to do with the imperfect in their midst – eliminate them?  But then, we would have to eliminate all people, including our evolutionary thinkers, because nobody is perfect yet – only becoming perfect – and those poor fools who do not believe that they can be perfect are helplessly evolving right along with everyone else.

The view of man that is in keeping with experience and practicality is the view that is presented by our Creator.  Mankind, since shortly after his creation, has been flawed, and far from perfect.  Our default impulses have always tended toward evil rather than good.  We should not fool ourselves because of our technological advances.  Just making better machines doesn't mean we are essentially better people.  We are not becoming more wise, moral, intelligent, or ethical than the earliest human cultures.  We still lie, murder, rob, fornicate, worship false gods, blaspheme, abuse our fellow men and women, use dishonest business practices, devise false religions, and babble nonsense just like every other generation before us.  We don't like to admit these things - they make us feel guilty and responsible - but denying the truth makes it no less true.  Denying truth only makes us less aware of the truth, and therefore less able to correct our attitudes and practices.

Because of our imperfection, we must have restraints such as government, laws, prisons, and death penalties.  Regrettably, mankind's flaws will sometimes cause nations to come into conflict, which often leads to war.  When our nation is at war, we may be obligated to fight for the common defense, or individually defend our lives and families.  Expansionist greed, ideological extremism, or national security issues can escalate to armed conflict, but at root, these conflicts are the result of the imperfection of mankind.

When trying to communicate with those who apparently hold a different view than we do about religious or political matters, we will do better to try to understand their views, without compromising those principles we hold as essential and true
Heaven help us if the persons on the other side of the discussion have already decided that they are perfect.  

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