Practical Politics

Politics is mostly about culture. If the culture in an area is benign and respecting of life and property, the laws of that area will be benign. If the culture is one of hierarchy and oppression, so will be the laws. It matters little if the place is a dictatorship, a democracy or a republic.

Culture in turn is something that is carried from one generation to another. Give a generation freedom to act irresponsibly, and that generation will become irresponsible. Demand responsibility from an early age and the culture will turn towards responsibility.

Climate and geography are also factors in shaping a culture. Holland lies mostly below sea level. If the people of Holland stop maintaining their sea walls and pumps, they will die. Holland was created through engineering and strong property rights. If you could pump water out of an area, and maintain the sea walls, the property was yours to keep. Take this away from the Dutch, and disaster is sure to follow.

Scandinavia is a place where it is so cold during winter that people will freeze to death if they do not make sure they have sufficient energy to heat their houses for half a year. This requires planning and saving. Effort has to be made during summer so that survival through winter is possible. Scandinavians are for this reason obsessive savers and investors.

Places like Africa, on the other hand, where people grow food all year long, and a few woolly blankets keep people warm through the night, there is no need to save. Engineering is not of vital importance either. The culture can focus on theater and religion. Every night is a party. Every day is sunny. There is no urgency. Things can wait.

There are a lot of inefficiencies in Africa largely because it is possible for this to be the case without killing off the entire population. The Scandinavians and Dutch became industrious investors because they had to in order to survive. There is no such need in Africa. African countries that develop industries do so because they can, not because they have to.

The practical function of culture is to bring forward a type of behavior from one generation to another. We find that something work for ourselves, so we promote this in our children. We also have ideas about how to improve things, so we make these suggestions to friends and family. There is a level of experimentation within every culture. Yet, they tend to remain remarkably constant.

The constancy of cultures can be explained in Darwinian terms. Most suggestions are not all that good. Bad ideas result in loss. Really bad ideas result in death.

Irresponsible cultures tend to die out over time. While this is especially true in harsh environments, it is also true in places like Africa. They may not be facing a harsh winter every year, but every now and again, there is a drought or a war or some other catastrophe. This is when culture becomes important. Those who have a culture of saving and investment are more likely to survive than those that live from day to day in the belief that there will always be food available in the local market.

However, when times are good, irresponsible cultures tend to grow. Why work hard when things are handed out to us for free? There is a tendency in both Holland and Scandinavia to pamper children. The impulse for this is natural, we like the idea of carefree living. Why not create this for our children?

This has led to a growing culture of entitlement which is now starting to dominate politics. People growing up with the idea that they should be taken care of by others will find it natural that the state takes on the role as a benevolent father.

This trend in Western culture is largely due to the way we bring up our children, and how we distribute responsibility among ourselves. We let our children free to live careless lives. We keep the responsibilities for property and income to ourselves. This is a mistake. Our children are becoming incapable of taking care of themselves. If we do not change this trend, things are likely to end badly, especially in places where frivolity has had a history of ending in death.

One way of ensuring that a healthy culture is transferred to our children is by giving them responsibilities early. I have transferred all my risky assets into the hands of my children. None of them are more than 30 years old.

Along with this gift I gave them an instruction. They are not to sell or borrow on the shares they have acquired, and they have to pay half of the capital income to me. They are to act as guardians of the estate and as my benefactor. If they screw this up, they will not only loose money themselves, they will put their father at risk as well.

Needless to say, my children feel the full burden of responsibility. They are very much aware of the severity of the situation. They get half their capital income to spend as they please, the rest is for the up-keeping of their father's modest lifestyle.

An interesting side-effect of this arrangement is that my children are becoming rather well thought of among their friends. Forced to act responsibly, they permeate an air of maturity. This is a very attractive quality, especially to potential mates. My children are not playboys with a rich father. They are wealthy young adults with a father that they have to take care of.

My gift to my children is not only affecting my children, but their friends and associates as well. Responsibility is suddenly a thing. Having a rich father is cool. However, being wealthy with the responsibility that it carries is better.

This is of course just a drop in the ocean when it comes to politics. But if a large enough number of people my age start handing responsibilities over to our children, culture will change, and so will politics. Frivolous ideas will no longer gain traction. Freedom with responsibility will once again be the mark of good politics.