Are Young Americans for Freedom? Survey Doesn't Say Enough

Young America’s Foundation, the parent organization of Young Americans for Freedom , has released a new survey of young Americans . Apparently they’re for freedom.

A large majority don’t want the federal government taking “an active role” in their daily lives, and a smaller majority don’t want it taking “an active role” in the lives of Americans in general—aside, of course, from its “essential functions.”

The problem is, what are the “essential functions” of government? The Objectivist answer can be summarized in familiar words : “to secure these rights” of “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” (I’ll explain more in a webinar Monday night .)

The YAF survey, however, has a broader idea of government’s essential functions. It lists as examples “a capable military, food inspection, air, rail and road safety.” I’ll grant a capable military, but food inspection? If the government must inspect food, then the government can decide what kinds of foods people can sell, buy and eat, and maybe even what labels they may and may not put on it. Then if you want to try a cutting-edge food (or an old-fashioned one most people have moved away from), or if you want to avoid a new technology you don’t trust, you may not be able to.

And how about air safety? It’s not clear that that means groping at the airports—but it’s also not clear it doesn’t mean that, and the federal government thinks it does.

That ambiguity is emblematic. Food inspection and air safety are only offered as examples, which are supposed to indicate the nature of an open-ended list of government functions. Who knows what other regulations might be included on that list. Don’t forget: Advocates of regulations generally consider their programs important. Without a principled view of the function of government, how can you say any law isn’t “essential”? You may want fewer regulations in total, which would mean moving in the direction of freedom, but will you be able to specify any regulations to eliminate? Yet you can't reduce total regulations without eliminating some specific ones.

The survey shows an interest in moving in the direction of freedom, and that's good news. But a survey that asks whether government should go beyond an open-ended list of “essential” government functions doesn't tell us enough. If you want to know what percentage of young Americans really want a free society, you’ll need a better survey than this—a survey based on a clear understanding of how a free society would be governed.

Want to improve your understanding? Attend my webinar!

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