principle of subsidiarity

[dairygirl4u2c]

Al mentioned the principle of subsidiarity recently. This is where the CC teaches that the lowest level of government to the point of none is the amount of government that must be utilized to be morally good government and you only move up the level of government as needed.

But what about those who are poor and not getting any help? By the principle you'd have to get government involved at least locally. If the locals don't then up more. This is cause for grief in that if people think they can just wait for government then that's great and they'll abuse.

If you know for sure obviously that they're abusing, then that's something else but. I'd think this is simply allowing something unfortunate when not so obvious, they are the immoral ones, you'd simply be doing what you're called to do by moving up the ladder.

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plus, when someone's poor even if they're getting by and others are not making "fair" amounts of money, then i'd think the government has a duty to move in. (if unions etc did not work) By definition if it's not fair, obviously it has that duty, (i think we can agree to that) but we'd probably end up debating what is fair because what i just said is pretty agreeable to move on to another level (i think).
I have some theories I'd submit indicatng why much in the US is not fair.

Edited October 9, 2005 by dairygirl4u2c

[Cow of Shame]

actually, I don't think it's the government's duty to take care of the poor. I believe this is the job of the church

[Aloysius]

or even just the job of the private sector in general, but obviously it is the divine mandate of the Church as well.

a local community's government should only do those things that cannot be accomplished by individual families and people in the private sector. so there are circumstances when people are treated unfairly, and things are not being resolved at that low level. in that case, the local government should step in and preferably only make laws that prevent unfair treatement, but when necessary certain temporary help should be given to those who were treated unfairly. TEMPORARY though, because the more an individual becomes dependant upon a larger entity the less freedom he has.

Fulton J. Sheen explained it very well with an allusion to a car. Perhaps you own a car... but the government pays for and gives you all your gas. well, then the government is more and more going to want to make sure you do what it wants you to do with its car. eventually you're gonna find that the government is driving the car for you.

I don't remember his exact analogy, but it was something along those lines.

[Socrates]

It is the responsibility of people at the lower levels to get involved. They shouldn't sit around and pass the buck to the next level. A bloated federal government that does everything is both a symptom and a cause of a corrupt society.

And it's not the job of federal government to guarantee that everything's "fair" (as in "equal"). Things will never be fair. Life's not fair.

Edited October 10, 2005 by Socrates