Jonah Goldberg, political speaker and columnist, spoke to UT faculty and students Tuesday to present his argument for free markets and free minds through his presentation "No Time for a New Deal."

"Democracy is about disagreement, not agreement," Goldberg said. 

According to Goldberg, it's good to have arguments because when there is an "eternal argument about freedom," no particular side has tyranny. Goldberg gave this advice for arguers: "Be happy warriors because this fight is never going to end."

Liberals like to use the phrase "a cause larger than ourselves" to get people to rally behind their initiatives, Goldberg said. While it sounds nice, he said, it is an insult of American society and citizens in general because it says we can't find other causes to live for.

Democracy is about disagreement, not agreement.
Jonah Goldberg

In a free society, the people decide what causes to which they dedicate themselves. "Very few people are not part of a cause larger than themselves," Goldberg said. 

Goldberg traveled back in time to prove his overarching theme. He used history lessons from World Wars I and II, the war on poverty and the new energy crisis to show the liberal ideology, 'moral equivalent of war,' a term used by American philosopher William James.

This 'moral equivalent of war' is an idea founded on the fact that the public needs what war does for us: war brings out the best in people and helps them rally around a cause. The 'moral equivalent of war' supposedly allows us to have those positives without the war. Using this, Goldberg claims liberals have wanted to "Europeanize" America for a long time because they have this general idea we are behind Europe. This is where he said the "New New Deal" is intending to be the "Europeanization of America."

Goldberg's favorite points of reference during his lecture were President Barack Obama and Franklin D. Roosevelt. The big difference between Roosevelt's "New Deal" and what Goldberg calls Obama's "New New Deal" is that Roosevelt had overwhelming support of the people while Obama currently does not. 

Goldberg mentioned Obama wanting America to buckle down on health care reform and global warming prevention because capitalism hadn't worked. Goldberg then cited a Pew Research Center poll listing the priorities to show how the Obama administration is focusing on the wrong subjects. Health care was ranked at eight, financial regulation was ranked at 15 and global warming was ranked last at 21, in the recent study from Pew.

Be happy warriors because this fight is never going to end.
Jonah Goldberg

Goldberg discussed the philosophical battle between followers of John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Locke's ideology is based on individuality where the government's relationship with the people is transactional so the people reserve most rights to themselves, whereas Rousseau's ideology focuses on deriving meaning from the group and the social contract is more important than general will of individuals.

He pointed out that human nature is a conflict of both ideologies and we want to be seen as individuals who are important to society and are a part of something larger than ourselves.

Goldberg says that the problem arises from people misapplying the group feeling that you can get from family or a bowling league by thinking they can get higher meaning from the government. To that he said, "The government cannot love you. It can only be government."

His parting note was one that left the audience pondering, "Democracy is flawed but democratic capitalism is the best system for maximizing human happiness."

Treston Wheat, Issues Committee Member, said "I view his analysis as suspect because he rails against programs that have been proven to help America."

The government cannot love you. It can only be government.
Jonah Goldberg

Wheat did give Goldberg credit for effectively communicating his message even during questions. "He used wit and humor to get his message across which is more effective than just fact," Wheat said.

In reference to the Issues Committee bringing in this conservative author, Wheat offered, "I believe the committee has a long way to go before creating a balanced message."

"I found his lecture to be very informative and far less incendiary than I was anticipating," Kathryn Basinsky, Issues Committee member, said. Although people may alter in political views, she thinks Goldberg offered "a message that people from all ideologies can support."