Left is right ... and right is wrong, prof claims

Based on evidence, liberalism triumphs over conservatism, ‘seniors’ at UNCA told

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The political philosophy of liberals and conservatives sharply differ and “both can’t be right,” so individuals must judge which holds the most merit based on “the evidence,” lecturer Bob Wiley said during the second of his Thoughtful Thurdays lectures on June 28 at UNC Asheville’s Reuter Center.

Toward the end of his two-hour talk, the professor said, “There is no contest between conservatism and liberalism, in my view ....

“Liberals advocate a mix, pragmatically choosing private or public, not on a doctrinaire basis, but on the basis of which more equitably” works best for the most people.

While Wiley said “it’d be a nice thing to think that both philosophies” include good points, they do not.“What is good is the Hamiltonian (liberal) philosophy and what is bad is the Jeffersonian (conservative) philosophy.”

About 22 people attended the second class in a series of three, titled “The Impact of the Two Doctrines on Government and People.” (Wiley stressed that UNCA, despite letting him lead the three classes, does not endorse his viewpoint — and that his conclusions are his personally.)

In his analysis, conservatives believe in the smallest-possible government, while liberals believe in big government with which people work cooperatively for the greatest happiness.

On a big screen, Wiley displayed the following quote he attributed to David Brooks, a columnist for The New York Times whom he described as a prominent conservative:

“Without the extraordinary contributions of liberals, the United States would be a much, much worse place than it is today.”

(Tthe Daily Planet found that Wikipedia refers to Brooks as “a moderate,” while No. 1-rated conservative talk-show host Rush Limbaugh totally rejects Brooks’ standing as a conservative, accusing him instead of being a media stooge for President Barack Obama, a Democrat.)

In the class, Wiley said liberalism is credited with giving the U.S. civil rights for African-Americans, women’s rights, Social Security and unemployment insurance coverage, among other changes. He noted that even the aforementioned Brooks praised liberals for bring about child labor laws, Head Start and many other social programs.

Especially in the cases of civil right and women’s rights, “liberals went to the mat against some ingenious arguments” from conservatives.He cited the late Sen. Strom Thurmond, R-S.C., whom he said was a conservative who stood prominently against school integration.

Wiley then told of conservative icon Ronald Reagan warning that if what is now Medicare were passed, doctors would be told by the government where to live and where to practice, and that “you and I are going to spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it once was like in America when men were free.”

As those in the class laughed, Wiley said that assertion proved to be way off the mark — and that was not unusual because “Reagan made a number of strange statements.”

He then quoted — and criticized as an example of conservatives’ opposition to child labor laws — former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich for his comment, “School districts should fire ‘unionized janitors’ and pay kids to maintain their own schools instead.”

At that point, he cited U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who said, “Federal child-labor laws violate the Constitution and shouldn’t even exist.”

Wiley said at least one liberal analyst said that human beings are intensely social animals and, therefore, Locke’s idea of an individual alone charting his own course is incorrect.He also quoted Elizabeth Warren saying, “There is nobody out there that got rich on his own.”

Next, Wiley turned to Friedrich von Hayek and Ludwig von Mises, whom he termed the “two most influential critics” of liberalism.He said they are from “the so-called Austrian School of Economics.”

As for Hayek (1899-1992), a 1974 Nobel Prize-winner in economics, Wiley noted that he is the author of “The Road to Serfdom,” a highly influential conservative classic. (The book has been called “a war cry against central planning,’ a system which Hayek says tends to veer toward dictatorship or totalitarianism — serfdom — as a means of coercing implementation of one’s plans.)

“In his defense,” Wiley said, “Hayek was deeply influenced by what was going on in Germany and the Soviet Union” during World War II.

However, the professor said perhaps no advocate for idealized capitalism has been more influential than the late Milton Friedman, a 1976 Nobel Prize winner in economics.

Friedman, who was a member of the Chicago School of Economics, believed that the kind of economic organization that provides the maximum economic freedom is competitive capitalism, Wiley said.In speaking of conservatives generally, the professor said they want to cut public expenditures, reduce social services, education and health, all of which they consider “bad,” while tax breaks for businesses are considered good, Wiley said.

“I advocate people sitting down ... and not being doctrinaire — and look at what’s the best way” to solve problems. “Apply human reason.” He said the question to answer is: “What’s the benefit for most people?”

At that point, one male class member said, “So far, it’s been a one-sided presentation. Capitalism has brought us to where we are.”

Another man said, “People figure out what’s best for them — and go with a political philosophy” that is in accord.

However, yet another man asserted, “You’re leaving out compassion.”A woman said, “It’s not necessarily your economic viewpoint, but your viewpoint.” Personally speaking, she said she believes in government intervention, when problems arise.

Wiley asked, rhetorically, “The Austrians and Milton Friedman: What do they want?” His answer was cut public expenditures, deregulation, privitization and eliminating “the public good.”

While Wiley conceded that “the efficiency of government always could be improved,” it beats the conservatives’ “supply-side, trickle-down economy.”He then cited Hayek as saying, “If you don’t think conservatism is best for this country, prove it.”

Despite Hayek’s contention that conservatism “is best for everyone, I claim there is proof” to the contrary, Wiley said.For instance, he said conservatism is not the best system for everyone when 1 percent of the population owns 35 percent of the nation’s assets.Wiley also said 46.3 million Americans are now living in poverty.

“I’ve heard it said that nearly half of Americans don’t pay any income taxes. Anybody want to trade your income for theirs?” (Nobody raised their hand.)

“That there’d be a better way than a total laissez-faire” economy, he said, “is the total bailout of the U.S. auto industry.” (Actually, the government only bailed out General Motors and Chrysler. Ford said it did not need a bailout.)

In a general swipe at today’s U.S. economy, Wiley declared, “It ain’t trickling down.”He then cited a recent Newsweek headline, “The right was wrong.”Wiley also said, “The tea party got it wrong ... Ironically, they still won’t admit it.” For example, he said tea party proponents complained that the government forced the taxpayers to bail out the failing car companies with no plausible chance of their turning around” financially.

In reality, the professor said the car companies repaid the government and survived due to the bailouts.As an example of a conservative politician popular wth the tea party, Wiley cited U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., who once reportedly said, “We have a gangster government.”

“The point is, we have yet to hear any of these (conservative) prognosticators say they were wrong,” Wiley said.He contended that conservatives favored the government’s bank bailouts — “and the fact is not all of the TARP funds have been repaid.”On the bright side, Wiley is the knowledge that “Republicans were not always so doctrinaire.”

He cited the last U.S. Sen. Jacob Javits, R-N.Y., who was “a liberal Republican ... about 50 years ago.” Wiley praised Javits for having said, “The private economy needs to be directed toward serving the national interest ....”

After a pause, the professor said, “There is no contest between conservatism and liberalism, in my view ....“Liberals advocate a mix, pragmatically choosing private or public, not on a doctrinaire basis, but on the basis of which more equitably” works best for the most people.

He quoted Francis Fukyyama, who said, “Hayek’s argument is based upon unsupported theory, rather than facts.”In pitting what Wiley termed “conjecture versus reality,” he asked, “So did the bailouts put us on the slippery slope to fascism or socialism? No.”The professor added, “One can accuse today’s Republicans of many things, but consistency is not one of them.”

Further, Wiley said, “When the state of North Carolina paid off Sierra Nevada to put a brewery in this area, the Republicans were: ‘Give them the mone’ ... Banks shouldn’t, in fact, be allowed to run wild, especially since they’re gambling with taxpayers’ money.”

In a swipe at the presumptive Republican presidential candidate, Wiley said, “(Mitt) Romney would say there’s always winners and losers,.”In the professor’s view, “it seems to me, as a nation, we should ask, ‘How much or little government regulation do we need?’” versus the doctrinaire approach of conservatives, which, he said, “can say with certainty that every government program is a one-way ticket to socialism.”

While Wiley said “it’d be a nice thing to think that both philosophies” include good points, they do not.“What is good is the Hamiltonian philosophy and what is bad is the Jeffersonian philosophy.”As examples of good moves by government, he cited the building of the Erie Canal, the transcontinental railroad, the land-grant universities, the interstate highway system — and “the Defense Department literally built the Internet.”

Wiley chided Hayek for making “the slipperiest of the slippery-slope arguments,” with the dividing line “leading the way (today) to Glenn Beck,” a leading conservative radio and TV personality.“Of course, Republicans don’t see it this way. They only see what they like.” Many in the class laughed when Wiley noted that one commentator recently said about Bachmann, “She’s easily confused.

“Republicans in recent years have grown to love social engineering — and not just in the tax code,” the professor said, adding that Grover Nordquist’s idea of freedom is: “We wish to be left alone and run our lives as we choose.”He concluded by saying, “There’s room for criticism in what government does. But there’s also room for criticsm of what business does. There’s room for criticism of everyone.”

Wiley said the important thing is to work “together to achieve result that are deemed to be the best. We need to look pragmatically at what works best,” which he termed the liberal approach.