New York Times columnist praises Heritage plan
September 7, 2007| By Nathaniel Ward
A Heritage Foundation proposal to reform America’s “social contract” by turning away from big government and towards civil society institutions provides “the perfect vision for 21st-century America,” writes New York Times columnist David Brooks (link for Times Select subscribers only).
The proposal from Heritage vice president Stuart Butler isn’t a return to “the laissez-faire social contract of the 19th century,” Brooks writes. “But neither is it the centralized, big bureaucracy contract of the 20th century. It’s a contract that envisions society as a dense but flexible web of social networks.”
Butler explained his principles for restoring the American social contract in a lecture delivered earlier this year. He argued that American society has traditionally met its obligations to the needy through “the extensive network of civil society institutions, including family, church, and neighborhood association” which have helped individuals return to self-sufficiency.
Unfortunately, Butler continued, developments since the 1930s—including the increased role of the federal government in providing social insurance, the growth of the entitlement mentality and increased reliance on businesses instead of civil society—have undermined this order.
Butler outlined a plan to return to the guiding principles of the American social contract:
- “We must gradually transform our existing social insurance programs into ‘true insurance’” that helps the needy. This means that programs like Medicare and Social Security, for instance, would be targeted at those who most need assistance.
- “We need to decide as a nation how much of our resources we are willing to contribute to such programs, given America’s economic resources and the other goals of our society.” Lawmakers must set priorities and operate within budget constraints and not pass costs on to future generations.
- “We need to stimulate greater individual responsibility by encouraging more private savings and insurance among middle- and upper-income individuals.”
- We should “envision a different role for employers” and instead turn to civil society to provide health and financial protections.
“These four steps are among the important actions needed to restore the American social contract to its original principles as a bargain between society and the individual,” Butler argued. “Refashioned in this way, our American-style social contract would be based more solidly on institutions that individuals value as integral parts of their lives, with the government dimension appropriately limited, sustainable, and more just to future generations.”
Nathaniel Ward is the Editor of MyHeritage.org—a website for members and supporters of The Heritage Foundation.
