Family Values -- Redux

[Lucifer_Carroll]

As a logician and a philosopher, I really, really hate buzzwords.

Buzzwords make good literary vibrators.

 

[amicus]

"Older Guy"....


You said...

It could be a long list, and probably should be. Family is ultra-important. I guess I would start the list with the legendary “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Partially because we could ALL agree to that much.

Does our government offer to protect our lives, our liberty, and our pursuit of happiness? Do WE adequately protect them from the government? It’s certainly changed, at least in many technological ways, since that phrase was first written. There are new ways we must be vigilant. We live in a world where the interests of big business supercede not only the individual, but the government itself. The agencies that used to watch over corporate interests, and try to maintain a balance between making a profit, and protecting our lives, our liberties, and our ability to be happy, are all now pretty much run by corporate puppets. It’s no longer simply a matter of trusting those we elect to sincerely represent us. Those whom we elect must also understand the power structure of our country, and the world, and be willing to sacrifice their OWN self-interest.

How do we protect our family values from this concentration of power which has so changed our lives?..."


~~~~~~~~~


Interesting post, questions and responses....

I am going to disregard this portion of your statement:

"We live in a world where the interests of big business supercede not only the individual, but the government itself."

If, at the core, you are just expressing another view of the anti free market debate that always rages, then I decline to enter.

However, if you do wish a discussion of 'family values', 'human values', then I suggest one begin at the beginning.

The term, 'nuclear family' is a concept identified by some sociologist that describes a very uniquely human association. It applies to no other species in quite the same way.

I assume the description is meant to reflect an Atom, with electrons in orbit by mutual association and attraction. As such, it is not a bad term, but indeed, has become a 'buzz word'.

So many who post on this forum seemed limited to a subjective viewpoint, i.e. one from personal experience.

One needs, I think, to attempt an objective, impersonal approach to the considerations of family and human values.

Humans are both the individual and the social animal.

The relationship between the male and female, going back to the day after Adam and Eve munched the apple, has always been one of a sexual nature (thanks Sigmund) first and a social, companionship one thereafter.

One needs to define terms....such as value....what is a 'value'?

Is a 'family value' different than a 'human value', if so, why?

"Life, Liberty and..." You stated, and rightly so, the basic value is human life from which all other values derive.

From the intitial clan or tribe, the 'group' has modified those basic values in practically every way that can be imagined, but the 'group' does not define the values, only enforce or coerce.

If we want to understand the values of human life and family life, we have to understand the nature of the beast and why we are what we are.

So, Older Guy, the ball is in your court.


regards....amicus...

 

[TheOlderGuy]

I think this of the slogan too. I'm nearly 58 and I don't recall ever hearing about 'family' values before it became a political phrase. I grew up with mere values, the human kind. I cannot even think what I would define as 'family' values.

Governments seem to try and use the idea to bolster Christian heterosexual marriages/families, so "god" only knows what it means to non-xian or non-white families. I grew up in a Mexican family in Detroit and know it was a very different experience than any other, but I cannot say what peculiar value there was in it outside what I might say about my parents and extended family in particular.

Perdita

i don't think the phrase existed beofre the religious right found that they could get some mileage out of it. and it was a brilliant idea. as someone pointed out it was a meaningless phrase that meant something comfortable to just about everyone, so it didn't really have to mean anything, as long as people felt you were on their side in the battle to keep your family safe and happy, and you would vote for the mouthpiece that spouted the words.

but it should have a useful meaning. no matter what your family is composed of (and I use the term broadly enough to include chosen family), it is those people who have the most effect on how your life unfolds, and it is the legacy you leave behind when it's time to check out. except in the most dysfunctional situations, family comes before all else. and our values, relative to our family, are absolutely crucial.

 

[Black Tulip]

but it should have a useful meaning. no matter what your family is composed of (and I use the term broadly enough to include chosen family), it is those people who have the most effect on how your life unfolds, and it is the legacy you leave behind when it's time to check out. except in the most dysfunctional situations, family comes before all else. and our values, relative to our family, are absolutely crucial.

I agree and in my family it's loyalty and like I said, solidarity. My brothers and I differ a lot in political views, the way we live our lives, but if there's a crisis we band together and it's always kind of seamless. No questions, no ifs or buts, no judgement.

That is very valuable to me and when it happens it gives me a great feeling of warmth and belonging. And it looks like we all instilled it in the next generation as well.

 

[TheOlderGuy]

I don't think family values depend on politcal beliefs or religion. It's up to the individual.

To me, family values are about teaching your children what is wrong and right. Not by the bible, but by your personal beliefs. It's teaching them to think for themselves. Not to be influenced by anyone else. It's arguing with the one you love and making up. It's being loyal to each other and passing that down to the children. It's about happiness and success for the family. If the family is happy, then it's a success.

as i read through everyone's responses, it seems as if the glue that holds a family together is a natural, instinctual thing, much as we find in the rest of nature. it takes some pretty strong solvent to dissolve those bonds. and yet, as we look around the world today, so many families have been destroyed, many by the hands of those who preached family values but delivered more despair. the destruction now reaches through many generations and will take a large effort to turn around, but to ignore it will allow it to continue to spread through society like a cancer, effecting the rest of us in numerous ways.

loyalty IS a big part of keeping a family together, and it seems like one of the instinctual reactions to those who love you, but perhaps we learn it in our younger years. and, yes, we won't always agree with everyone in our family, but we can be civil about our disagreements, and loyal in times of need.