Jacks
Posted by Christie Malry on October 4, 2010 at 10:06 am
A common charge levelled against Conservative policies is that they embody the "I'm alright, Jack" philosophy. In other words, they just reflect an individual's own selfishness. And That Will Not Do.
There are more than a few problems with this line of argument. Firstly, it's on very shaky philosophical ground. Regardless of your world view, selfishness is just what human beings do, even if they see themselves as acting selflessly. Take Franny Armstrong, the hapless leader of the 10:10 organisation, recently eviscerated in the press for their stupid and ill-judged No Pressure campaign. Even someone like Frannie, who might claim to be acting in the greater good, can be redefined in terms of her own desires and beliefs which she is acting out. And, by that measure, she does what she wants rather than what anyone else wants, which is the dictionary definition of selfish. (we can pass over, for now, the fact that she herself is responsible for many many times the carbon emissions of a 'normal' citizen).
So, given that selfishness is a necessary consequence of free will (at least as we ordinarily understand it), how can we usefully categories the Conservatives? Conservative philosophy rests on the basic idea that society, not the state, is best placed to help others and create prosperity. Conservatives believe that ordinary people are brilliant and, left to their own devices, will more or less just get on with their lives as they want. It's the "You're alright, Jack" philosophy - the belief that people can - and will - succeed.
Compare this to the Labour message. Labour believes that the state must help people. Left to their own devices, people will fail. They are stupid, useless and incompetent and must be assisted by the state at every turn, or they will surely die. This is the "You're not alright, Jack" philosophy, which seeks to enslave everyone to the state.
So, do you believe people can, or cannot? Whose side are you on?
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