The Means matters…

Here is an exert from an article by Chuck Colson that has gotten my mind spinning.  Are we asking the wrong questions?  Are allowing those in seats of power to direct the moral direction of our country?   When people are so focused on the end result, it allows those in positions of power to make decisions to get there without much consideration or question.  We must protect ourselves from beings so finish line focused that we ignore the means of getting there.  THE MEANS MATTERS!!

In his inaugural address, the President said we should not ask “whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works.”

On the surface, the statement seems quite harmless—even practical. But the seed of this thinking is pure pragmatism—the only philosophical system that can bear the “made in America” label.

It was in the late nineteenth century that William James, Charles Pierce, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and John Dewey, the father of modern education, met at Harvard and formed what was called the metaphysics club–although their philosophy began with skepticism about metaphysics and theology. In essence, they argued that one cannot know truth, so good can only be measured by what works, and what works is therefore good. As James said, “Truth is the cash value of an idea.” Holmes went on to substitute the notion of social engineering for transcendent truths in law.

Today, without a moral compass to gauge direction, “Does it work?” has replaced “Is it right?” If it works for you, then go right ahead.The 1960s adage, “If it feels good, do it,” has been updated to: “If it works, do it.”

The history of the last 80 years should teach us that large and powerful central governments are dangerous. But the history of the last century should teach us that unchecked pragmatism is even more dangerous. In fact, it’s how tyrants gain power. Mussolini became El Duce on the promise that he’d make the trains run on time.

Read the rest of the article here.