Nanny State Politics

Every now and again I find posts that transcend any particular issue, but have direct relevance to the debate on how our families are organized. These usually take the form of "father state" or "nanny state" political commentary, and it marks a conflict between expecting us to be parents of our children and the expectation of the government to become parents over its citizens. This is no exception. I think you will want to read the whole thing, but the real bullet is found in this paragraph by Wretchard,

It has become fashionable for governments to treat people — even adults — like children: children who consume too much, obey too little and remain too fond their imaginary friends. And their betters take it upon themselves to guard their speech, take away their dangerous toys and curtail their choices because they are prone to make unwise ones. And most of all they see to it that we should expect no better our lives but a little welfare gruel and some end of life counseling. Once upon a time mankind saw it as their birthright to wander the fields, swim in the streams and see what was over the next hill. Today we live penned up in dark houses warded by sour matrons and bloodless didacts who are forever seeking to administer their “teaching moments”.

My point in this is not that one should triumph over the other, but just how similar the governance of the country is to the governance of our households. So similar that we often see this conflict playing out over and over. My reconciliation of this is pretty straightforward, but I will save it for later.