Tocqueville's America, Europe, and Morality

Alexis de Tocqueville records the emotions, actions, and organization of America in the first half of the 19th century. He analyzes American family and gender roles, and contrasts what he finds to his understanding of generalized European familial and gender trends.

He distinguishes greatly between the more "aristocratic" social traditions of Europe in the early Victorian Era, and those of the "demcoratic" Americans of the same time period.

He observes the American and European approach to education of young women, and the youth in general. He says:

"In France...education of women commonly receive a reserved, retired, and almost cloistral education, as they did in aristocratic times; and then they are suddenly abandoned, without a guide and without assistance, in the midst of all the irregularities inseparable from democratic society. The Americans are more consistent. They have found out that in a democracy the independence of individuals cannot fail to be very great, youth premature, tastes ill-restrained, customs fleeting, public opinion often unsettled and powerless, paternal authority weak, and marital authority contested.

[Americans] held that the surer way was to teach her the art of combating those passions for herself. As they could not prevent her virtue from being exposed to frequent danger, they determined that she should know how best to defend it; and more reliance was placed on the free vigor of her will than on safeguards.

Thus the vices and dangers of society are early revealed to her; as she sees them clearly, she views them without illusions, and braves them without fear; for she is full of reliance on her own strength, and her reliance seems to be shared by all [Americans] who are about her.

Far from hiding the corruptions of the world from her, they prefer that she should see them at once and train herself to shun them; and they hold it of more importance to protect her conduct than to be over-scrupulous of her innocence. "

The approach taken here by 19th century Americans toward education is to encourage the independence, awareness, rationality, and moral decision making by American women, and American youth since such edcuation by the parents, taking place in the family, would be imposed upon all children.

He charges Europeans with being of a different, or opposite mentality: encouraging the display of "childish timidity or ignorance" and promoting the "innocent and ingenuous grace which usually attends the European woman in the transition from girlhood to youth."

The America he describes here, in contrast to Europe, could not be more different in our day and age. If anything, the roles between Europeans and Americans are reversed concerning the aforementioned individuality and pre-mature adulthood of youth.

The public policies of a people, if approved and enacted through a democratic system, should reflect the morality of the majority - or at least the ideals of a people. Thus, how the law dictates individuals may interact with the "irregularities", "vices and dangers of society" reflects the public's moral attitude toward these vices.

How Europeans today expose their youth to these vices is almost how Americans were described as doing so almost two centuries ago.

How Americans and Europeans choose to expose and prepare our youth for alcohol says much about the reversal of the two sides of the Atlantic.

For example, the United Kingdom has a legal drinking age of 5 years old, and a minimum public drinking age of 16. Almost all European countries have similar laws allowing alcohol consumption by children in the home, and alcohol purchasing ages around 18. The clear disparity in the public-private consumption laws reflects the European family's belief of having the freedom to educate their children about alcohol before becoming an adult.

The use of these freedoms were proved by a European Union special report stated that "nearly all 15-16 year old students have drunk alcohol...on average beginning to drink at 12½ years of age". Most of this consumption occurs either in their own home or another's home, and was the same for girls, the report said. The report said drinking in restaurants and bars (with parents) was also common.

All states ban the purchase and consumption of alcohol in public under the age of 21, with almost all banning private consumption in the home under 18. The federal government of the United States penalizes states that do not honor a 21 drinking age minimum.

As one article put it "with the focus on education about safe drinking instead of restriction...[Europeans] claim many problems are avoided. Though the per capita consumption of alcohol in countries like France, Spain, and Portugal is greater than in the U.S., the rate of alcoholism and alcohol abuse is lower. This comes from education of gradual drinking, which leads to less incidents of young adults getting drunk." Most Americans do not think this way.

A European Union Report says "In comparison to the rest of the world, the countries of Europe are less likely to have a number of [alcohol control] policies, especially those based on market restrictions or taxation." European belief about a wide exposure and recognition of such "temptations" is very similar to Tocqueville's percieved American beliefs.As evidenced by and in addition to the aforementioned quotes, Tocqueville very directly mentions American and European attitudes towards pre-marital sex and the education of women about sex. He says American women understand "the costs of pleasing" and protect their "virtue" with reason and a strong moral consciousness.

To what extent this mentality is fostered by education in the family is questionable since most families do not actively discuss such topics with children. Most sex education takes place through the school, and only to a much lesser extent, the media.

The Guttmacher Institute says the following about U.S. sex education:

In 1999, one in four sex education teachers taught abstinence as the only way to prevent pregnancy and STIs.

On top of the 31% of U.S. school districts that only permit abstinence sex education, the other 51% of school districts have a policy to teach abstinence as the preferred option for teens.

"There is currently no federal program dedicated to supporting comprehensive sex education that teaches young people about both abstinence and contraception". However, "there are three federal programs dedicated to funding restrictive abstinence-only education...the total funding for these programs is $176 million for FY 2006."

Abstinence education has its grounds in moral education - moral education being a very American characteristic and approach to vices, according to Tocqueville. Abstinence education teaches youths about the presence of pre-marital sexual opportunities in reality, and it also teaches these youths to recognize it and avoid it (to "see it at once...to shun them" as Tocqueville says). However, the fact that so many school districts refuse to teach youths how to deal with such opportunities responsibly, using reason reinforced by education, serves to reveal that Americans may no longer be arming their youths with the "reason" and trusting "the free vigor of [their] will" to make decisions.

Europeans seem to be doing a better job at educating children about the subject in public schools. Most countries have mandated sex-education since the 1970s. In France, "schools are expected to provide 30 to 40 hours of sex education, and pass out condoms, to students in grades eight and nine." The government also launched information campaigns on contraception with TV, radio spots and the distribution of five million leaflets on contraception to high school students. For example, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Finland offer mandatory comprehensive sex education, with the Dutch system seen as the most successful at lowering teenage pregnancy.

These modern trends may hint at the reversal of stereotypes between Europe and America. Or in fact, just a sign that Europe has changed, while America remains the same, with the difference being discouraging "immoral" activity through law instead of social pressure. Either way, the use of laws and government policy to enforce morality in America can also be seen however, as a reversal of our trust in the independence and individuality of Americans - thus supporting the conclusion that America no longer teaches its youth to act independently and responsibly, but to act as a great power says so, similar to the religious and social pressures that confined Europeans two centuries ago.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_education

http://ec.europa.eu/health-eu/doc/alcoholineu_chap9_en.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_alcohol_laws_of_the_United_States_by_state
http://www.drinkingandyou.com/site/uk/child.htm

http://www.articlesbase.com/addictions-articles/are-us-college-students-drinking-more-than-their-european-counterparts-886086.html

http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/25/should-wine-be-a-family-affair/
http://www.youthrights.org/dastatelist.php
http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_sexEd2006.html

Pictures:

http://www.inkcinct.com.au/web/cartoons/2007/2007-775-failing-sex-education.jpg

http://www.neurosciencemarketing.com/blog/wp-content/photos/wine_dinner.jpg

Self-defense coverage, the media, and America

The American media twists the narrative of terrorism to produce worthy victims in line with our political ideologies and sympathies: sympathizing with Russian citizens for a terrorist bombing associated with their state's oppression of Chechnya; sympathizing with Iraqis killed in bombings by extremists many Iraqis clandestinely support; the news narratives tend to reflect the majority viewpoint

Does the media create narratives and worthy victims/heroes elsewhere, evolving around a different theme? Do different levels of news see the same story with a different narrative and victim?

The 2nd Amendment political action group Buckeye Firearms certainly believes so. Tim Inwood writes that "sensational stories dealing with the misuse of firearms always seem to make the headlines, and if the body count is high enough they go national. However, we almost never hear of a positive use of a firearm in the defense of the innocent stopping a slaughter."

Is this a common narrative? I looked at several articles dealing with home invasions to see if the latter part of his thesis is true.

At 1:30am, two masked gunmen burst into a Daytona Beach home, pointing a gun at 37-year-old Randal Mckee. Mckee’s 32-year-old roommate pulled out his own gun and fired at the gunmen; both gunmen fled. The gunmen had connections with drugs and that the violent home invasion was not a random act. No report of this incident on the national news.


A local Washington State news station released this interesting report about a senior citizen's self-defense, two weeks after losing his wife. Again, no mention on the national news.


The Orlando Sentinel released this article with this lede: "Charles Johnson is a man of his word. On Oct. 4, 1936, then 19, Johnson promised to love and protect his bride, Berlie Mae." The 91 year old saves his wife when the couple are held at gunpoint in their own home by firing at the gunmen with a hidden pistol under his seat. The situation was portrayed a story of heroics, elderly love, and youthfulness. Did this make the national media? CNN, MSNBC, and CBS archives indicate no.

A Phoenix, Arizona news outlet reported a home invasion where four men were taken captive by gunmen that demanded money from them. One captive found a shotgun, killing a gunman and injuring the other. As far as stories are archived, it was not mention on national news.

A Bakersfield, California elderly man was at home with his wife and grandson. When the 9 year old grandson noticed a burglary, the grandfather confronted the burglar which leveled at rifle at him. Before the burglar could shoot, the grandfather stunned the burglar with a shot, and held him until the police could arrive. This story, covered extensively by The Californian with pictures and quotes, never made any other non-local news outlet.

Atlanta, Georgia college students were having a birthday party when two armed gunmen entered the apartment, separated the men and women at gunpoint, and demanded cash and cell phones. The men checked for ammo to ensure they "had enough" to kill the ten students. As one gunman prepared to rape an armed student's girlfriend, the armed student pulled a shotgun out of his backpack and shot both gunmen, saving ten people's lives. "His intent was to rape and murder us all", a student said. The story was never reported on national media.

Does the national news ever report violent home invasions? All the time. National news outlet MSNBC reported this story where a woman was held a gunpoint in her home as they robbed her house. They also reported this story where a woman was locked in her bathroom as gunmen again robbed her home. Home invasions seem to be newsworthy subjects for national news outlets.

Nationally, murders of defenseless, unarmed civilians always make the national news. The murder of a four member family "shook the suburban community, prompted legislative changes in the state, and attracted the attention of the national media", according to CNN. Sob stories of home invasion murders, involving one death, children, or a gang of gunmen, easily attract national news media attention. National news media frequently post videos of footage of gunmen in the security camera along with 911 calls. The murder of an unarmed woman, barricaded in her home, was reported by CBS. The New York Times also has articles on home invasions, such as this one in Florida, in different parts of the country where a murder occurs. They also reported a home invasion by gunmen that assaulted a woman.

Anywhere one turns, horrifying home-invasions of a helpless victim, murdered by people wielding guns, makes the news. Car chases, arrests, hostage situations that involve no-heroism and no-violence frequently make prime time news. Stories of armed citizens confronting these gunmen and saving the lives of several other people don't.

Media has a responsibility to reveal injustices, especially when people die as a direct or indirect result of a law. In fact, when injustices arise concerning racial or gender discrimination, corporate abuse, and the environment, news media hard news stories and commentators can be highly vocal - whenever the media outlet believes such discussion is inline with its corporate interests. When it comes to armed self-defense, however, things change.

When an Illinois resident man used a handgun, purchased legally years before, in self-defense against a burglar that had stolen his keys the day before, Wilimette village officials pressed charges for violation of the township's local hand gun ban.

An Ohio woman watched helplessly as an armed gunman confronted her husband and shot him. Although owning a concealed carry permit, she had to leave her gun in her parked car due to a law banning handguns in restaurants. The woman testified in an Ohio Congressional hearing which was considering reforming the law. The injustice associated with the law and her story was nowhere to be found on national media. What does this say about the media's priorities and belief about worthy victims and heroes? Reading the reader's comments of the Bakersfield self-defense incident, I noticed that everyone praised and revered the grandfather as a hero for his actions.

If the national news media ever covered self-defense incidents, I would wonder what their narrative toward these gun owners would be. Would it be like the Toledo Tribune's editorial that condemned store-keepers for using guns in defense against armed robbery? Or would the alternative - heroism for those that defend themselves - seem to unattractive to a media conglomerates heavily vested in promoting certain ideologies, and appealing to a politically-homogeneous, loyal viewership.

Is the mainstream media's ignorance toward stories of heroic self-defense (like that of ninth-grader Jeff May during a school massacre) as Tim Inwood claims in his essay, a reflection of a new attitude about self-empowerment in American minds, which Nietzsche has called a 'slave-mentality'? A sign of changing perceptions in America? Such a narrative begs a reconsideration of the idea of America - the idea that America is as a land and home of the free and brave.



http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/7195
http://www.wral.com/golo/blogpost/2193548/
http://www.valleycentral.com/news/story.aspx?id=402271
http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/7195
http://www.king5.com/news/local/One-man-shot-during-possible-home-burglary-in-Carnation-90084097.html
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/19365762/detail.html