Thomas Sowell on Suggested Solutions to War, Poverty, and Crime
"The great evils of the world—war, poverty, and crime, for example—are seen in completely different terms by those with the constrained and unconstrained visions. If human options [to address these evils] are not inherently [limited], then the presence of such repugnant and disastrous phenomena virtually cries out for explanation—and solutions. But if the [moral deficiencies of human nature itself] are at the heart of these painful phenomena, then what requires explanation are the ways in which [these great evils] have been avoided or minimized. While believers in the unconstrained vision seek the special causes of war, poverty, and crime, believers in the constrained vision seek the special causes of peace, wealth, or a law-abiding society. In the unconstrained vision, there are no intractable reasons for social evils and therefore no reason why they cannot be solved, with sufficient moral commitment."
Quoted from “A Conflict of Visions”
People are meaning-seekers. We cannot help but look for the meaning of, and answers and explanations for, the great questions of life, and particularly the great problems of life (such as war, poverty, and crime, to use Dr. Sowell’s examples). “Why?” That is the default eruption of the human heart in response to tragedy. While the questioner is not necessarily looking for answers when he cries out like that, he is filled with confusion and doubt nevertheless, and feels the weight of his ignorance. “I felt lost.” “I had no explanation.” “I had no idea what was going on.” “I was in shock.” “I couldn’t understand why this happened.”
Human-produced evil is a stock feature of human existence. Murder is as common as recording history; theft and exploitation are as standard as families and communication. One might be tempted to conclude that…