Bleating “Tax The Rich” will not help the poor

The truth is there is no better defender of the poor, and upholder of their security and prosperity, than a socially conservative society.

They say that as the Roman Empire was on the verge of collapse, the gladiatorial games got more and more fanciful and outlandish. This anecdote sprung to mind on seeing the return of the annual abomination known as the Met Gala in New York. It was common to see the rich and powerful, unmasked and dressed in frocks, making powerfully left wing statements, such as American Member of the House of Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez with her ‘tax the rich’ dress. All that while the ordinary men and women making up the staff for the event were subjugated in the background in work attire and masks.

But, not only is the cognitive dissonance from left wing figures such as Ms Ocasio-Cortez astounding, it is misguided to suggest that the poor’s problems can be solved by better economics.

Let us put this way. A child in the UK conceived in 2019 had a 25.2% chance of not leaving the womb at all. (Interestingly, the Department for Health and Social Care and Office for National Statistics collect abortion statistics on every protected characteristic except for class or income; instead we can only make inferences from figures connected to Local Authority abortion rates. I hate to be a cynic, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s an uncomfortable truth people in the know would rather leave undiscovered). If they are born, there’s an almost 50:50 chance their parents will be unmarried, be they cohabiting or not in a relationship at all, denying the stability and security lifelong marriage undoubtedly brings. If they are a boy who attends school, even attaining basic literacy might be a luxury, and as a result they may be subjected to a life expectancy twenty-five years less than a highly literate counterpart. Such inequality will only be embedded the further they reach in the education system and beyond it.

To all of these problems, the left can only suggest splurging more money. More money would prevent family breakdown and fix educational attainment. But this is completely ignoring the fact that this is exactly what has been attempted, time and time again, achieving the same results (or lack of them). The truth is, these issues are not a debate about economics at all, but a debate about society.

And when those on the left do have something to say about society, it has no connection to reality. All they offer is vapid wokery, much more comfortable with vapid and abstract debates about identity than school standards and family breakdown.

It’s tempting (and perhaps optimistic) to think that deep down left wingers recognise this vapidness, and so resort to the endless stunts like Ms Ocasio-Cortez’s dress or disrupting the M25.

The truth is there is no better defender of the poor, and upholder of their security and prosperity, than a socially conservative society; a society built on authority, responsibility and strong moral standards was allowed and gave rigorous education, solid family life and proper freedom the poor could enjoy. To say that a socially conservative society makes everything fine and dandy is fanciful, but I’d take it over the version of society Ms Ocasio-Cortez and others want any day of the week.