« A Blonde Current-Account Deficit? | Main | Do We Need Bureaucrats to Ensure that Banks Maximize Profits?» Don Boudreaux
December 01, 2004
Creationism Lives!
Don Boudreaux
Creationism apparently is natural to the human mind, for so many people find it impossible to think of the world in any way other than as if it and all that is in it are the products of a single force – a single, intentional uncaused cause that creates our world.
When creationist thinking today is applied to the astrophysical, geophysical, and biological parts of the world, almost all members of the “reality-based community” (as modern American leftists are now fond of calling themselves) reject it as simplistic, baseless, and thoroughly at odds with scientific thought. “Only red-state yokels blinded by religion believe in creationism and reject natural selection!”
But the bluest blue-state left-“liberal” atheist oughtn’t be too quick with the self-congratulatory praise of his or her own rational faculties. Most left-liberals are pure creationists when it comes to society and social order. For them, government is the creator of order – of high wages, of safe working conditions, of safe food and drink, of fair prices, of good education, of trustworthy physicians, accountants, and butchers, of peace, commerce, culture, and civility itself.
The modern American scholar most clear about his creationism – although he doesn’t call it that – is University of Chicago Law professor Cass Sunstein. In his new book, The Second Bill of Rights: FDR’s Unfinished Revolution and Why We Need It More than Ever, Sunstein consistently applies his long-espoused faith that sovereign power is the only – indeed, the only possible – source of rights and social order. Therefore, in Sunstein’s canon, everything that happens in society is ultimately the doing, the responsibility, of the state. Ultimately, all order is created by the threat of official violence. If the state is good, the order it creates will be extensive and good. If the state is evil, the order will be less extensive and the society will be plagued with avoidable ills. But good or bad or in-between, the state is the necessary creator of society.
Bah! Humbug!
From David Hume and Adam Smith through Hayek to Anthony de Jasay and Randy Barnett (among many others), the true reality-based view of social order is that it is the product of spontaneous, undesigned, and undesignable evolution. The state has its consequences, to be sure, but it is emphatically not society’s Creator. Nor could it possibly be.
Tom Palmer of the Cato Institute brilliantly demolishes Sunstein’s antediluvian world-view in this essay in the Dec. 13 issue of National Review.
Several years I penned my own analysis of this sovereign-creationism view.
Posted by Don Boudreaux in Myths and Fallacies | Permalink
TrackBack
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d834518ccc69e200d834577fe369e2
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Creationism Lives!:
» Blue Creationism from Crumb Trail
Don Boudreaux notes that Creationism Lives! and it's not just a sport for the heartland. Creationism apparently is natural to the human mind, for so many people find it impossible to think of the world in any way other than as if it and all that is in... [Read More]
Tracked on Dec 1, 2004 5:59:29 PM
» Creacionismo progresista from El Rincón, apuntes liberales
El atavismo socialprogresista que denunciara Hayek es tocado por Don Boudreaux en un interesante post en Café Hayek. Un post que me trae a la memoria un polémico (como no) capítulo de “La tabla rasa” (Paidos 2004) de Steven Pinker.... [Read More]
Tracked on Dec 1, 2004 8:17:29 PM
» Creationism Lives! from A Day After Yesterday
Cafe Hayek: Creationism Lives!
Creationism apparently is natural to the human mind, for so many people find it impossible to thi [Read More]
Tracked on Dec 2, 2004 1:26:24 PM
» Cafe Hayek on Social Order from tinfoilhats.org
Cafe Hayek has a nice, short entry about creationism, that segways into thoughts on the creation of social order -- ie, does order come from government only? But the bluest blue-state left-“liberal” atheist oughtn’t be too quick with the self-con... [Read More]
Tracked on Dec 3, 2004 7:32:27 AM
» I'M AGAINST CREATIONISM IN ALL FORMS . . . from Pejmanesque
So it is worth taking a look at this post debunking societal creationism.... [Read More]
Tracked on Dec 4, 2004 4:16:06 PM
» Creationism Lives! from Right Mind
[Read More]
Tracked on Dec 5, 2004 9:23:17 PM
» if only you believed in miracles from ...muttered the ogre
Travis found a choice rant by Don Boudreaux at Cafe Hayek:
But the bluest blue-state left-"liberal" atheist oughtn't be too quick with the self-congratulatory praise of his or her own rational faculties. Most left-liberals are pure creationists ... [Read More]
Tracked on Dec 5, 2004 10:29:22 PM
» Is Cass Sunstein a creationist? from The Panda's Thumb
<a href=”http://cafehayek.typepad.com/hayek/2004/12/creationism_liv.h…“>Don Boudreaux thinks so.</a>... [Read More]
Tracked on Dec 6, 2004 11:05:49 AM
» Liberal Creationism from The Examined Life
In this post at Cafe Hayek, Don Boudreaux comments that a belief in a central govt for prosperity is in fact sovereign "creationism". Creationism is the ideology that this extremely complex world and universe necessarily has an intelligent designer beh... [Read More]
Tracked on Dec 9, 2004 12:43:58 AM
» Statism is not creationism from Universal Acid
This analogy is intended to sting people like me - committed Darwinians who despise creationism yet are left-liberals also committed to the use of state power to improve society. Fortunately for me though, the analogy is flawed, in two basic ways. [Read More]
Tracked on Dec 13, 2004 7:43:51 PM
» Unreasoning Faith from Crumb Trail
Last December there was a series of posts1,2,3 inspired by Don Boudreaux's analysis of the hysterical reaction of Democrats to their losses in the November election. Boudreaux advanced an argument that the root of all their distress was analogous... [Read More]
Tracked on Mar 5, 2005 2:10:17 PM
» Unreasoning Faith from Crumb Trail
Last December there was a series of posts1,2,3 inspired by Don Boudreaux's analysis of the hysterical reaction of Democrats to their losses in the November election. Boudreaux advanced an argument that the root of all their distress was analogous... [Read More]
Tracked on Mar 5, 2005 2:14:11 PM
» MP3 File Search from The Mp3Database
Download mp3 audio music and song lyrics. Mp3 search engine to music links for free download ... Quick Database Search search in 250209 mp3 entries ...
[Read More]
Tracked on Mar 26, 2006 3:53:24 AM
» Finance Search Online: home insurance 2buk from Business Finance Online
Business Finance Online Product/Service Directory. Search for business finance related products and services by browsing the directory of business finance ... [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 28, 2006 4:43:31 AM
» Going Green on College Campuses from chools Nationwide
chools Nationwide Work to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 28, 2006 11:07:55 AM
» Europages, European directory from Open Directory Project
Multilingual european business directory, 600000 european companies, european company directory and business opportunities, trade leads, ... [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 28, 2006 6:17:01 PM
» Library of Congress WWW/Z39.50 Gateway from Harvard Seismology: Centroid Moment Tensor Catalog
Contents: Search Library of Congress Catalog | Search Other Catalogs | About the Z39.50 ... Library of Congress Online Catalog. Simple Search (any keyword) ... [Read More]
Tracked on Apr 29, 2006 8:32:19 PM
» Jewelry Shop from Jewelry making, Tips from The Jeweler's bench - Jewelry making
The Gem and Jewelry World's foremost Resource on The Internet. ... The Jeweler's Selected Bibliography. Add Ganoksin Power Search to your website ...
[Read More]
Tracked on May 19, 2006 11:37:04 PM
» College Opportunities Online Locator from Search the Web
Search by criteria. Search by location, program, or both. By Location - Select up to 12 States or a Geographic Region ... [Read More]
Tracked on May 20, 2006 12:09:06 PM
» Weight Loss Hurdle for Black Women? from Hurdle for Black
Hurdle for Black Women? Category: Health News Created: 5/12/2006 Last Editorial Review: 5/12/2006 [Read More]
Tracked on May 26, 2006 2:48:00 AM
» IBM Assisted by Wolcott Group in Developing Connectivity Between Lotus Notes and SAP from 15, 2006)
Trackback URI: http://www.prweb.com/zingpr.php/RmFsdS1NYWduLUVtcHQtQ3Jhcy1IYWxmLVplcm8=
[Read More]
Tracked on May 27, 2006 9:53:11 PM
» Internal Audit: Resources for Internal Auditors from Audit Company
Internal Audit - is the Web portal and online community for the internal audit profession provides free audit work programs, ICQ's, checklists, ...
[Read More]
Tracked on Jun 6, 2006 10:50:05 PM
» Cole signs Manchester City extension from ndy Cole has
ndy Cole has signed a one-year extension to his contract at Manchester City. [Read More]
Tracked on Jun 12, 2006 7:32:41 AM
» home loan
from loan mortgage
Loans Home Equity Loans - Home Mortgage Student Loans [Read More]
Tracked on Jun 18, 2006 7:06:58 PM
