By: Dale Weckbacher
1 Corinthians 14:11
Therefore, if I do
not know the meaning of the language, I shall be a foreigner to him who speaks,
and he who speaks will be a foreigner to me.
NKJV
Language is what sets humans apart from the rest of the
animals in the world. Our ability as
humans to voice our thoughts through either spoken or written language allows
us to create a better world. However,
when two individuals try to carry on a conversation and do not speak the same
language, it is impossible to exchange ideas.
Unfortunately, people speaking the same language can even have
difficulty sharing ideas because they are unclear about the definition of
certain words.
I believe there is a difference in the definition of
conservatism within the Republican Party and this disagreement is one reason
for the current infighting going on within the Republican Party. This difference in definition was revealed
recently in an interview John Kasich, Governor of Ohio had with reporters back
on the third of February. In the
interview, Reporter Henry J. Gomez asked Kasich “Do you feel that you
have a base problem, and when you’re campaigning for reelection this year, what
are you going to tell conservative Republicans who bring up complaints about
Medicaid expansion and about the severance tax?” (1) Governor Kasich then went into an explanation
of his “conservative philosophy” which consists of endless welfare spending
that insinuates that opponents of entitlement expansion so not care about the
poor the way he does. (1) Apparently, Governor Kaisich’s conservative
philosophy supports big government and the forced transfer of wealth.
One definition of conservatism that I found says the
following, “(a political or theological orientation advocating the preservation
of the best in society and opposing radical changes).” (2) Using this definition, we must first
determine who the best in society are and implement programs designed to
preserve them. Looking at what Governor
Kaisich said, we can surmise that the best in society he is interested in
preserving are the poor in his state.
This is where I have to disagree with governor Kaisich’s philosophy.
I do not believe that the best way to preserve the poor in
our country is to expand entitlement programs for this only serves to stifle
ambition and encourage idleness. Instead,
the best way to preserve the poor is to encourage them to receive an education,
live moral lives, and become producers in our society that no longer accept
charity but are able to contribute to charities.
1)
Education – Statistics have proven for many
years that having more education equals higher income. (3) Granted there are exceptions to this rule and
in our currently sluggish economy, many college graduates are experiencing
difficulty finding employment, but over the long-term, more education results
in greater income. Therefore, instead of
just handing individuals a handout or large tax credit each year, society would
be better served if these individuals learned a marketable trade or profession
and were able to earn a greater income practicing their new trade or
profession.
2)
Live moral lives – The United States has the
highest teen pregnancy rate in the industrialized world. (4) Teenagers that become pregnant are much more
likely to live their lives in poverty because:
a. Teen
mothers are less likely to complete high school (only one in three receives a
high school diploma) and only 1.5% has a college degree by age 30.
b. Nearly
80% of unmarried teen mothers end up on welfare, a much higher percentage than
their older counterparts. Almost 50% of all teen mothers and over 75% of
unmarried teen mothers began receiving welfare within five years of the birth
of their first child.
c. While
we may imagine that a teen pregnancy is a the result of a one-time mistake, nearly
25% of teen mothers have a second birth before turning twenty.
d. Teen
mothers are less likely to qualify for a high-paying job since only two-thirds
of teen moms have a high school diploma.
e. Teen
moms are less likely to attend college.
In addition:
f.
Babies of teen mothers are more likely to be born prematurely
and at low birth weight, which raises the probabilities of infant death,
blindness, deafness, chronic respiratory problems, mental retardation, mental
illness, and cerebral palsy; it also doubles the chance that a child will later
be diagnosed as having dyslexia, hyperactivity, or another disability.
g. These
children are also at greater risk of abuse and neglect.
h. The
sons of teen mothers are 13% more likely to end up in prison while teen
daughters are 22% more likely to become teen mothers themselves.
i.
If an unmarried teen mother did not end up receiving her high
school diploma, there is a 64% chance that the child will grow up in poverty.
The child of a married high-school-graduate, however, has only a 7% chance of
growing up in poverty. (4)
This is why social issues are important to conservatives for
conservatives understand that they have an economic effect on people.
3)
Become producers that can provide charity
instead of taking it – Dr. Ben Carson is one of the favorite targets of
liberals. This is because of his courage
in confronting President Obama face-to-face over the failures of
Obamacare. However, he stands as a great
role model to people currently living in poverty. Raised by a single mother, he was able to
achieve success by becoming a world-renowned brain surgeon.
Just like governor Kaisich, I believe the goal of conservatism
is in the preservation of the best in society.
However, people like Governor Kaisich who believe they are preserving
the best in society by providing perpetual government handouts have it wrong. The true conservative believes in the
preservation of the best in society by helping them become self-sufficient
individuals capable of providing for not only their own needs, but by also
being able to reach out the hand of charity to others. This is the best thing we can do for those in
our society that currently live in poverty.
The best in our society are those who have succeeded and are
able to help the poor with charity and a job.
These are the ones that we must preserve in our society if the poor are
to have any chance of escaping their poverty.
1. Hart, Jason. Ohio Gov. John Kasich Wants to
Redefine Conservatism. www.redstate.com. [Online] Red State, February 3,
2014. [Cited: February 17, 2014.] http://www.redstate.com/diary/jasonahart/2014/02/03/ohio-gov-john-kasich-wants-to-redefine-conservatism/.
2. Princeton.
Conservatism. wordnetweb.princeton.edu. [Online] [Cited: February 18,
2014.] http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=conservatism.
3. Strauss, Steven.
The Connection Between Education, Income Inequality, and Unemployment. www.huffingtonpost.com.
[Online] The Huffington Post, November 2, 2011. [Cited: February 18, 2014.]
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steven-strauss/the-connection-between-ed_b_1066401.html.
4. Do Something.org.
Background on Teenage Pregnancy. www.dosomething.org. [Online] [Cited:
February 19, 2014.]
http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/background-teenage-pregnancy.
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