The Great Divider

"It's all for nothing if you don't have freedom."
--William Wallace (Braveheart)

When Barack Obama was running for president four years ago, many of his supporters hailed him as The Great Unifier, or something to that effect. It was predicted that he would unite the country around common causes toward a greater good.

Fast forward to today. Currently the country stands more divided--perhaps at historical extremes. President Obama is part of the divisiveness, attacking groups that oppose his view of the world. Only his more ardent supporters, blind with loyalty, would claim that that president has fulfilled the predictions about his unification potential.

The easier prediction four years ago would have been forecasting an increase in divisiveness if unity was sought by increasing government action.

Because liberty is an inalienable right, people seek to pursue happiness as they see fit. Since people differ in their interests, motivations, capabilities, etc, it is unlikely that people will be ever be fuly united in the literal sense. However, people are prone to cooperate with each other in a volunary manner. People come together and trade when both sides perceive that they will be better off.

In a free society, then, people 'unify' on their own to engage in mutually beneficial exchange.

Trouble arises when government is employed to promote oneness. This is because government is force. Using government as an instrument for unity is using force 'to bring people together.' Such an action opposes natural law. People will naturally push back at actions which threaten their liberty. Divisiveness grows.

Stated differently, the greater the government intervention, the greater the divisiveness. Given the immense interventions enacted by the federal government under this administration, our lack of collective 'unity' should be of no wonder. It is a natural response to the use of force.

A free society fosters unity through voluntary cooperation and trade. A despotic society tries to force unity through government coercion.