The Quest for Cosmic Justice

Thomas Sowell's "The Quest For Cosmic Justice" is a stab in the heart of left-wing politics. Early in his book, the author makes a clear distinction between traditional ideas of justice and what Mr. Sowell describes as "cosmic justice." Traditional justice is process-oriented. Everyone plays by the same rules and is judged by the same standards. It is a system that "flesh and bone" human beings can live under. Cosmic justice, on the other hand, means providing everyone with equal prospects of success. This concept of "fairness," as morally spurious as it is, becomes outright dangerous when it requires third parties to wield arbitrary power to override rules and control outcomes. These third parties - found in government, universities, the media, and the courts - see a nation desperately in need of cosmic justice. The gap between the rich and poor is supposedly growing, threatening our economic future. The so-called "earnings gap" between men and women is supposedly the child of a sexist society. Police brutality is becoming a high-tech version of lynching. And so on. Of course, many of these "problems" disappear when confronted with real-world experience and statistical evidence. Creating government "solutions" to these "problems" only entrusts more and more power in the hands of people further and further removed from the real world. To allow any government authority to determine how much money you receive for your work is not only a distortion of the economic process but is a dehumanizing attempt in reducing everyone to political clients. Government price controls on food, supposed to help the poor, have led to widespread hunger in countries around the world. Undermining law enforcement because of its perceived unfairness to minorities have led to high crime rates which hurt minorities most of all. The passion for equality - which somehow became twisted into racial preferences - has led to a divorce of performance and reward, which is to say a divorce between incentive and behavior - perhaps the most crucial foundation of Western civilization. Yet theories of cosmic justice and the public policy that springs from them are unlikely to be re-examined. Why should they be re-examined when they permit its advocates to feel morally superior to everyone else? Meanwhile, those who believe in systematic processes - the marketplace, traditional values, constitutional law (namely, most Americans) are suspected. Mr. Sowell's book is an excellent indictment of "cosmic justice" and an excellent defense of traditional ideas of process and the rule of law. Unfortunately, those who should read this book most will probably read it least.

Woe to those who willingly ignore and reject this brilliant prose. Anyone concerned with a tiny group of intellectual elites searching for the "better way" must read and heed. Mr. Sowell lays out in simple context how the continuing social experimentation on our country's laws and culture will finally reduce this great nation to one of consumate misery; all in the name of "Cosmic Justice."

As I read this book, the thoughts of arrogance, condescension, and hubris came to mind - not towards the author - but towards the subjects of his discussion. Certainly one cannot fault the social engineers and institutional "tinkerers" for their intentions. However, intentions are not the measure of success - results are.The policies of the "anointed" have become gospel, not subject to debate or empirical verification. In essence, anyone who disagrees with them or offers another approach is necessarily opposed to the intentions of those holding the true "gospel" of social harmony, prosperity, and peace.But this substitute for evidence and effectiveness has failed the most important element - those who are the intended beneficiaries of the "anointed" policies. The efforts to "equalize" and pursue "cosmic justice" not only have few success stories - but rather there is an abundance of proof to show that their policies are counter-productive and even harmful.But never mind the petty details! We're merely interested in doing the right thing, having the right motives, having our hearts in the right place, etc. Consequences be damned! We know what works best! The conquest for social justice will not be deterred by such things as uncooperative human beings, lack of success, or the Rule of Law.This book is an excellent follow-up to Sowell's "Vision of the Anointed" as it drives home the point that those who embrace visions of cosmic ideals are embarking upon an endeavor requiring super-human skill. And their pursuit in spite of this fact does good for no one - not the least of which are those who they claim to want to help. In pursuit of their cosmic ideals, the visionaries have become impervious to the reality that frustrates their plans.It is past time to cease the game of demonizing those that disagree with the ideas and policies of the "anointed." It's time for the "gods of social justice" to admit their humanity and potential for failure - to re-open discussion so that the business of genuinely helping people can take place.For those interested in an outside observer's perspective (i.e. outside the circle of the "anointed") on the practicality and efficacy of the modern vision of social justice, this book is a must read. Those who are part of the "anointed" or supporters of the same are going to find Sowell's assessment disturbing. Nevertheless, a symbolic gesture from an "anointed" would be his willingness to abandon his self-righteousness by reading this book with an open heart and mind.

"You can't change the rules in the middle of the game." "Hey, you just made that rule up." "You're cheating!" Kids on a playground arguing? No, adults in our judicial and political systems. In the first section of The Quest for Cosmic Justice, Thomas Sowell takes us on a tour of the world through time to display examples of childlike behavior in adults. He discusses two types of justice. Traditional justice is process-based: make up the rules before the game, everybody plays by the same rules, and the end result is left open. Cosmic justice is ends-oriented: have rules, but fiddle with them so that the game ends as someone wants it to.In the second section of the book, Dr. Sowell examines equality, a much bandied-about word, but slippery in the extreme as to what it means. If we have learned anything from science it is that defining terms is crucial to progress - unless one is pursuing cosmic justice, of course. He talks of ". . . politically imposed equality . . . poisonous relations between the races and sexes . . . internal dissensions and demoralization have played a crucial role in the decline and fall of other civilizations, and there is no reason to expect this one to be immune."Visions, their necessity for humans to operate and the things that can go wrong with them, are treated in the third section. The final section concerns the quiet repeal of the American Revolution. Comparisons of the French Revolution to the American Revolution were very informative, at least to me. I remembered an awful lot of heads got chopped off in France, but hadn't made the connection between that and the philosophy underlying the French Revolution. "At the national level as well, the 'Committee of Public Safety' under Robespierre ruled by decrees that could over-ride any laws."Now, let's see . . . are Executive Orders when Congress doesn't do what the President wants equivalent to Robespierre's decrees that led to the guillotine?

Thomas Sowell is one of our finest thinkers. One of the most important facts he shows, with painstaking detail and with witty insight is that some of the well intentioned efforts at correcting "cosmic injustices" create greater injustices, and cause more suffering than had principles of "traditional justice" been followed. In other words, the interventionist cure is often worse than the disease. I thought it was great when he said that we may be bothered by inequalities that exist, but we can't be God like on Creation Day and say, "Let there be justice!" and expect the universe to conform. I challenge proponents of affirmative action, followers of John Rawls, and other radical egalitarians to successfully counter the arguments in this book, based on facts, rather than wishful thinking.