Does America Have an ‘Official’ Morality?

Former Democrat presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is a socialist. So were Lenin, Mussolini, Hitler, Stalin, Mao, and a host of other charming fellows. But Sanders makes a distinction, he stresses that he’s a “democratic socialist.” You see, Bernie needs some criterion to separate the good socialists, like him, from the moral monsters.

Bernie likes to make grand pronouncements about morality; what’s moral and what’s immoral. Bernie thinks “acting on climate change a moral obligation.” Bernie thinks that it is immoral as well as unjust that our government doesn’t provide healthcare for all; after all, all those socialist European nations provide it. He thinks America’s level of “income inequality is immoral,” not to mention “grotesque.” Sanders even had the chutzpah to go to the Vatican to preach about the “immorality of unfettered capitalism.” One might conclude that if Sanders is against it, then it’s got to be immoral.

Not all that long ago, the American left would call out anyone who dared to make a “value judgment.” Back then there was no right and wrong; “moral relativism” was all the rage. But now the Left hurls moral accusations with abandon. So here’s a question for them: Does America have an “official” morality?

Has the American federal government instituted a morality? If so, where did they get this “government morality”? We have laws against murder, rape, and theft, but it’s not really necessary that lawmakers cleave to any ethical system in order to pass such laws. There are many immoral things that are perfectly legal in America; e.g. you can choose to waste your life, and government won’t stop you.

Since the founding of the US, its people have created a division between the ideas of ethics and morality, as was wanted by the founding fathers.

As background, since time immemorial, national leaders claimed that they were anointed, sanctified, and placed in office by God or “the gods”, thus to object to their laws and dictates was an affront, not just to them, but “to heaven” as well.

So our founding fathers did something radical. While they admired and honored God, they were very clear that our constitution and laws are written *by men*, and so could be changed again by men, without offending God.

But, they also were very concerned that anti-religious radicals would run away with the idea, so very carefully enacted the “endowed by the Creator”, “natural rights” of the Bill of Rights. Specifically out of the realm of man made changes.

This handled the God-man dichotomy, but it left unsettled the “equality of different religions”.

Over time, this resulted in the distinction of ethics and morality in the common mind.

Ethics is seen by the public as adherence to the written law, so that more or less, a politician who claimed to be ethical could be evaluated by the public as to whether he actually was, or not.

However, a claim of morality by a politician only muddies the water, because the question remains, “Whose morality?” That is, morality is *sectarian*. The morality of a Methodist, a Baptist, a Catholic, a Mormon, a Jew, etc., etc. vary a LOT. Because, in effect, morality is obedience to the “laws of heaven”, not mankind.

What is certain is that an atheist, of whatever stripe, has no claim to morality *at all*, though they may claim to be ethical. But the essence of morality is that it is *not* self created, subjective or changeable by the individual, which atheists almost have to insist it is.

While an atheist might live a life that to others appears moral doesn’t matter. It just means they have greater self control. Nothing *guarantees* that they act morally. They could be grotesque, like the Clintons; but they are not, nor have they ever been, moral.

The best indicator of amorality or immorality is socialism, because it is inherently atheistic, elevating man, in their minds, to take the place of God. So a socialist is never a moral person.

"The rights which he possesses are, it is believed, conferred upon him, NOT BY HIS CREATOR, but RATHER, by the society to which he belongs." Get that? Society. .NOT God. . are the source of our rights. He goes on "What they are (your rights) is TO BE DETERMINED BY THE LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY." You see? The Founders said our rights are endowed by God and that fact is NOT something that must be determined by any other authority of the earth. . .because THAT FACT IS SELF-EVIDENT!!

SOME writers have so confounded society with government, as to leave little or no distinction between them; whereas they are not only different, but have different origins. Society is produced by our wants, and government by our wickedness; the former promotes our happiness POSITIVELY by uniting our affections, the latter NEGATIVELY by restraining our vices. The one encourages intercourse, the other creates distinctions. The first is a patron, the last a punisher.
Society in every state is a blessing, but Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil . . . - Thomas Paine, Common Sense (1776)

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.