American society is becoming more dangerous. It isn’t because we don’t have enough security. It isn’t because we don’t have enough money, enough luxury. Tough economic times aside — compared to most of the world — America is prosperous, even amidst a weak recovery. Many of those who warn that our way of life is in danger defend freedom, free markets, the rule of law, as well they should.
But there is another facet to America’s success: personal responsibility. This phrase is usually used to mean that whether you succeed or fail is more the result of your own efforts than of legislation, regulation, or some public good. Though almost every person of good will agrees that there ought to be a safety net, we should also recognize no one is more invested in our lives than ourselves — and no one gets more out of personal achievements than the achiever himself.
Yet another part of personal responsibility is to recognize that human beings are imperfect. It’s part of putting off childish things. A fantastical view of human nature is dangerously naïve. It is, however, an integral part of the liberal utopia — and it has consequences.
More and more, we are loath to protect ourselves. To take precautions, it is now ridiculously implied, is to admit culpability if something bad happens. Probably the most common issue about which to hear this refrain is rape.
There are few crimes as horrific as rape. You would think that everyone would want women to account for the depravity in human nature and prepare accordingly. But to do so is now idiotically called “blaming the victim.”
Jay Caruso wrote of this ridiculous mindset in a piece earlier this year:
I can see it now. Some are already asking in their mind, “How dare this man blame the victim for what happens to them! Have you no decency, sir?”
I am not blaming the victims.
I am hoping to prevent more women from becoming victims.
Yes, there are men who prey on women who are weakened and/or vulnerable. They target women who are intoxicated often helping to contribute to that intoxication (or exacerbating it with roofies or other drugs) in order to take advantage of them. These dirtbags deserve to spend as much time in prison as the law allows.
Dirtbags exist. No one will argue this. Unfortunately, law enforcement is not always around to protect us. Staying away from certain areas, being prudent about alcohol consumption, or carrying a firearm (as the Constitution allows) can be the decisions that protect a woman from assault. It is not victim-blaming to offer wisdom.
I can find more examples. Speaking of firearms, what about the person who might have warded off a thief — even prevented his own murder — by brandishing a 12-gauge or a Glock? To recommend that people own a gun for defense if they live somewhere dangerous is simply common sense. To point out that defensive uses of guns deter hundreds of thousands, maybe millions, of crimes per year is not to suggest that someone who does not own one is to blame for his victimization.
Perpetrators of violent crime are not being excused by those who suggest taking precautions — and they should not be excused. They should be anticipated and planned for. And yet it seems that the only one who is never responsible, according to liberals, is the perpetrator himself. Probably because society or his environment made him do it….
It is an amusing irony that government seems to think we must be protected from everything. But when we are expected (allowed?) to take precautions, it is on someone else’s dime. If coffee is hot, it’s McDonald’s fault. They should warn us in writing, in case we don’t know. They should pay us if we spill it. Contraceptives should be paid for by faceless taxpayers, who are really people who often have conscientious objections to providing birth control.
A free society like America’s is supposed to be cannot last long without a large degree of personal responsibility in all its forms. And we should never offer, or withhold, advice based on a naively sunny view of human nature. When we do, people get hurt.