Forced Equality

In a classroom at Eastern Michigan University, the topic assigned for debate was this. Is America less equal than it used to be? Are we witnessing a growing disparity between the haves and the have-nots? While on the surface, it may be tempting to attack this insinuation that America is unequal, the premise that lies below it, is really the key. Is complete equality a good thing? Is it even within the realm of possibility? Does it work for the betterment of society when we “rob the rich” to “feed the poor”? It is something that we have been bombarded with during the past few election cycles. I mean, how many times, have you heard “tax cuts for the rich” and “big oil” and “big drug" companies. The very basis for John Kerry’s plans was the raising of taxes on what he defined as the wealthiest 1% of Americans. While to the unsuspecting citizen, this may sound well and good and on the surface it may even look like it might work (after all, it did for Robin Hood in the movies, right??), what lies beneath is a history of misery and failure whenever an wherever it’s tried.

As we continue the series on African politics and liberal failures, we shift our focus the small nation of Zimbabwe. It was formerly the British colony of Rhodesia until Robert Mugabe led a revolution for independence in 1980. Throughout the next 20 years, Zimbabwe enjoyed a period of relative economic peace and stability. White farmers were the backbone of the economy giving Zimbabwe the reputation as the breadbasket of Africa, and, for the most part, Mugabe was content to live side-by-side with them. That all ended in 2000, when Mugabe began his “land reclamation act”. Mugabe systematically began to evict white farmers off their land often using murder, violence, and intimidation to force compliance. The nation is today in shambles and growing worse every day. In 2003, their GDP was 13.4% in the negative. Inflation is at 700% and growing every day. The average life expectancy has dropped to an all-time low of 37. And, the people are dirt poor with many on the brink of starvation; all the while Mugbe just spent millions in foreign aid money on his huge 81st birthday bash.

Mugabe’s police-state-regime and his brutal extermination of all political dissidents have earned him the number 10 slot on the world’s worst dictators list. Personally, I think he deserves a higher ranking than that. (That is, of course, after I and some missionary friends of mine were almost arrested for being British spies…yea….figure that one out. Fortunately, we had a vehicle problem and just missed being caught by Mugabe’s goons). I can personally tell you of the poverty and utter despair that exists in this, once economically sound, country. You just cannot go and see this first hand and not be affected. I remember the first questions that came to mind when I was there, “How could something like this happen? How could it have gotten this bad, this quickly?” I believe that these questions have definite answers. On the surface, you may discount this as a consequence of a crazed and rabid dictator. While this is definitely true, I believe there is a deeper lesson to be learned here.

We go back to our original questions at the beginning of this piece. Is complete equality a good thing? The very cause of Zimbabwe’s problem lies at the door of this question. Mugabe believed that equality could be achieved by taking from the rich (taking the farms of rich white farmers) and giving to the poor (giving them to the blacks). And indeed, he was successful. Equality has been achieved. It's just that everyone is equally poor, starving, and miserable. As we have seen, this has been an utter disaster and failure across the sea in Zimbabwe and it has been a failure here in the states as well. (just look at welfare in the early 90’s) Complete equality can only be achieved at the lowest common denominator. Herein is the intrinsic flaw of forced equality. The redistribution of wealth creates equality only at the lowest possible point. Instead of calling people to better themselves by hard work and determination, we tell them that they are victims of the big guy and redistribute what wealth still exists to supplement their victim hood. This plays on our natural inclination to be lazy and let someone else take care of us instead of driving us to better ourselves. Mugabe told the black people that they were victims and they deserved to be compensated for their victim hood at the expense of the big guys (white farmers). And indeed, he may have a point in the fact that the whites had mistreated the blacks in the years gone by. But in trying to enforce equality by taking from some to give to others, Mugabe has destroyed his country, and we are in danger of doing the same if/when we follow in his footsteps. (ever hear, "two wrongs don't make a right??")

So the next time you hear "tax cuts for the rich" or "taxing the wealthiest 1%", think about the poor people of Zimbabwe. Is equality through the redistribution of wealth worth the cost? I don't think so.

[If you would like to read a first hand account of some of the horrors that occur each and every day in Zimbabwe, check out this blog that is updated weekly. It may shock you.]