Like David Brooks, the right-wing pseudo-philosopher Ben Shapiro thinks he knows what is wrong with today’s America–an excess of individualism. Unlike Brooks, Shapiro puts this idea in some historical context. He argues that our civilization works best when classical Greek/Enlightenment ideas of individualism and rationalism are adequately balanced by Judeo-Christian concepts of traditional morality. In his view, the Greek part has gotten out of control, the Judeo-Christian part is withering, and America is consequently spiritually sick. Put in more blunt terms, America needs to get back to God, and as soon as possible. It’s a message social conservatives will love.
There is some merit to his concept of the tension between the two pillars of thought. His conclusion, however, isn’t supported by the facts. If you take any of the indicia of societal decay–divorce rates, crime, teenage pregnancy, rampant opioid use, and the like–it will probably be worse in the supposedly godly red states. Where does that leave his theory?
Nowhere, for two reasons. First of all, societal breakdowns are far more likely where popular expectations regarding the economy have been frustrated. Second, traditional values can flourish in the absence of Christianity. It’s happening in the blue states today; crime and the rest are falling, not rising.