The Moral Objection to Socialism

Having grown up in Canada, and benefited from the free healthcare and highly subsidized public education system, I can say that the social democratic model of government is not all that bad, so long as there is a rigorous system of rights in place that the State is obliged to respect.

But the subject of human rights raises interesting questions about the moral status of socialism. In point of fact, I would like to argue that if human rights do indeed exist, they furnish us with a cogent moral objection to socialism and the welfare state. Namely, I would like to argue that people have certain rights that no individual or group can violate. Furthermore, where a capitalistic economy is made possible by the free exchange of goods and the voluntary participation of rational agents, socialism is only be made possible by the coercive violence of the State. By trumping the rights of its citizens, it uses violence to force them to pay for public goods through taxation. Insofar as socialism is sustained and maintained by violence, and impinges on the rights of its citizens, it must be rejected.

Let me use the example of welfare in Canada. Having a welfare system means every Canadian is forced to pay part of their income to other Canadians. For every every 5-day work week, for example, the government forces its citizens to effectively work one of those days for another Canadian. Where other countries may rely on voluntary charitees to take care of the poor, the Canadian government obliges all of its citizens to contribue through taxation. If a Canadian should object to having their hard earned income go to strangers, and subsequently decides to withold paying taxes to the government, one of several things will happen, keeping in mind that the State has a monopoly on the use of coercive force in society. If a citizen fails to pay their taxes either they will be (a) fined, (b) have their property confiscated, (c) their children taken away by Child Services, (d) serve jail time, or, should they resist arrest, they may even (e) be shot. In other words, Canadians risk life and limb should they refuse to participate in the welfare system. In the name of the 'common good', the State is prepared to forfit the rights of its citizens to life, bodily intergrity and personal property, and will threaten them with violence should they decide not to help their neighbor.

There are legitimate uses of violent force. Repelling a thief, murderer, or rapist for instance. But refusing to give to charity is not a legitimate reason to use violent force against the citizens of a free country. And that's what socialism tries to be, isn't it? Forced charity? Imagine if the Salvation Army began to arm its volunteers with weapons, so that instead of ringing a bell in front of the Walmart during Christmas, they would be shooting an AK-47 into the air, and threatening to kill the shoppers if they refused to contribute to the charity. As ridiculous as that sounds, that is precisely what welfare states like Canada are doing to their citizens. So I ask you, is it right to threaten a person with death if they refuse to give to charity (or welfare)? I think not. Charity should always be voluntary, and never be forced.

But think of all the other State-sponsored things that are paid for by taxpayers. Museums and concert halls, ice rinks and skateboard parks, secular schools and libraries. Sure, these things are nice to have. But they can just as easily be built and funded by the private sector through voluntary donations. By keeping it voluntary rights will be respected. Violence is unecessary. Such projects can only be built at public expense by threatening citizens with violent coercion should they refuse to underwrite the projects through taxation. That is simply immoral. Insofar as socialism depends upon the violent coercive force of the State, it too is immoral. The State should have no right to violate the rights of its citizens, even in the name of public good. Hence, my moral objection to socialism.

Religious Freedom in Canada

I am originally from Montréal, Canada. By the grace of God I married a beautiful and godly Texan girl, and am in the process of imigrating to the United States. One of the reasons why we decided to make our home in the U.S. rather than in Canada has to do with the fact that Canada does not uphold or respect the rights of its citizens.

An an english-speaking Canadian and graphic designer who grew up in a province with draconian language laws (ie: Quebec), there are plenty of examples I could provide to show that the Canadian government has little regard for upholding the rights of its citizens. Stores and businesses, for example, are liable to prosecution by the provincial government if they do not conform to language laws that prohibit advertising in english. In other words, businesses in Quebec cannot advertise in english without having to follow severe restrictions, even when that business largely caters to english-speaking clientele. Sadly, despite being an officially bilingual country, Canada did nothing to protect my rights. But language issues were only peripheral to our decision to remain in the United States. At the heart of our consideration was the issue of religious freedoms.

In point of fact, Canada abrogates the religious freedoms of its citizens whenever homosexuals or abortionists object to them. In almost every case where a Christian individual or organization has, on moral grounds, objected to providing a service to homosexual couples or organizations, they have been brought before the courts and either fined or jailed for their objection. In fact, the Christian moral objection to homosexuality has increasingly been regarded by the courts as a 'hate crime', and there is already legal precedent in Canadian courts for labelling the Bible as 'hate literature' for its condemnation of homosexual practice. A wonderful article written by Dr. Chris Kempling documenting some instances of this religious persecution can be found here.

But there are other examples not covered by that article. For instance, Canada has made it illegal to spank children, and has used the law to persecute Christians who believe that spanking is lawful. The government has even used the law to take children away from their parents. No doubt there are many cases in Canadian society where discipline turns into child abuse, which should be, and is, illegal and liable to prosecution in the courts. But the Canadian law now forbids all spanking. As a result, a group of Mennonites have fled Canada for the U.S. See the article here. If my wife and I had chosen to stay in Canada and raise children according to Biblical principles, which includes the possibility of spanking, we would be liable to be jailed and have our children taken away by the State. That, combined with the increasing tendency to force even homeschooled children to study government issued materials that promote a secular worldview that is antithetical to Christian, and which favors homosexual practices in particular, can you blame me for not wanting to live in Canada any longer?

As a socialist, or social-democratic state, it is inevitable that the rights of Canadian citizens will be increasingly taken away. It is part of the socialist worldview to abrogate the natural rights of its citizens whenever they come into conflict with the States' goals, or with the 'common good'.

Christians, of course, cannot share that worldview. We know that God alone is absolute, and that the State's authority is only derivative of God's. The State is part of God's good order of creation so long as it restricts itself to its proper sphere of authority, namely to the enforcement of just criminal law. The Canadian government has refused to accept this role, and has chosen to increasingly control all aspects of life and society, effectively annuling other God-ordained authorities such as the church, family, school, and business. If Canada continues to follow the path of rebellion, it will no longer be a safe haven for orthodox Christians. Apostates from the United, Anglican, and Presbyterian churches will, of course be quite safe, but only at the cost of their immortal souls.

May the Triune God have mercy on the Christians living in Canada. May He never allow Canada to fall completely away into sin and religious persecution. And may He keep the U.S. a country where religious liberties are protected so that Christians can worship God freely. Amen.