Principles of Good Governance

Recommendations for public policy in relation to families, education, the economy, civil society, the private sector, and religion

1. Principles of Good
Governance
In the family, economy, civil society,
education, and religion
Universal Peace Federation

3. What Is the Purpose of
Government?

4. What Do All People Want?
In view of the fact that all knowledge and
every pursuit aims at some good, what is
the highest of all goods achievable by
action? Verbally there is very general
agreement; for both the general run of
men and people of superior refinement it is
happiness; they identify living well and
doing well with being happy.
Aristotle

5. People Are Social Beings.
"It would be strange to represent
the supremely happy man as a
recluse. No one would choose to
have all possible good things on
the condition that he must enjoy
them alone; for man is a social
being and one whose nature is to
live with others; accordingly the
happy man must have society, for
then he has everything that is
naturally good."
Aristotle

6. How Is Happiness Attained?
When our desires are fulfilled. For example:
 Hunger > eating food > satisfaction
 Missing someone > seeing them > warm
relationships

7. Cautions
 Some desires are unrealistic.
 Some desires are immature.
 Some desires are excessive.
 Some desires are wrong.
Therefore, focusing only on desires leads
to unhappiness.

8. Religions Recognize This.
Christianity – “Wretched man that I am!” (St.
Paul)
Judaism – “The heart is corrupt.” (Jeremiah)
Buddhism - All suffering is caused by craving
and focusing on extinguishing cravings.

Paradox: The fulfillment of desire can lead to
both happiness and suffering.
Therefore, desires need to be channeled and
controlled so their fulfillment brings happiness
and not suffering.

9. Core Desires
 To eat, sleep, and have a home
 To experience love
 To achieve social position or authority
 To gain knowledge and skills
 To worship

10. Supportive Structures to
Satisfy Desires
DESIRE
SUPPORTIVE SOCIAL
SYSTEM
To experience love Family
For material things Economy
For position and authorityCivil society, politics
For knowledge and skills Education
To worship Religion

11. Core Purposes of Government
Defense
To protect a country from invasion which
would destroy people’s way of life and
prevent them from being happy
Justice
To maintain the laws necessary to create a
realm of freedom in which people can live a
moral and meaningful life and thus be happy
and fulfilled

12. The Family System
Fulfiling the desire for loving
relationships

13. Family as the Locus of
Meaning
Dwelling place of God:
“The family that prays
together stays
together.”
Cultivating the spiritual
life creates hope for
the future.
Enduring relationships
give meaning.
Family offers reasons
to live and multiply.
Shabbat prayer

14. Family as the School of Love
Place for love between
husband and wife
Reproduction and love
between parents and
children
Socialization and
education into the
manners, customs, and
traditions of one’s
community
Transmission of culture
and the good way of life

15. Family as the Cradle of
Culture
“By far the most important
channel of transmission of culture
remains the family; and when
family life fails to play its part, we
must expect our culture to
deteriorate.”
T.S. Elliot: Notes towards the Definition of Culture, 1948

16. Family as a Key Economic
Unit
Members work together
to create wealth to
support the family and
community.
Develops a sense of
responsible ownership.
Encourages creativity.
Teaches a culture of
giving and sharing.

17. Family as the Ground of Being
Love
Life
Lineage

18. Crimes against the Family
Adultery: the chief cause of divorce and family
break up
Unmarried mothers: every child has the right to
a mother and a father
Child neglect and abuse
(especially common among step-families)
 Neglect of parents and grandparents
Caution: Government should not supplant the role
of the family in education, health, welfare, and
finances.

19. Helpful Government Policies
Laws that protect family and marriage
Tax system that favors marriage and children
Inheritance laws that favor the build up of
generational wealth and responsibility
Cautions:
Social security system should not subsidize
unmarried mothers.
Social services are best provided by the
voluntary sector.

20. The Family and Society
Familial collapse leads to social collapse.
Society is more than families; it includes social structures
and institutions
Distinctions between family and society:
 The family is based on affection and forgiveness.
 Society based on justice.
Cautions:
 Narrow affection in social relations > corruption
(nepotism)
 Legalism in family relations > can hurt people’s hearts

21. The Family and Society
Society is an expansion of the family.
However, affection declines as distance increases.
Cautions: what happens when resources are scarce?
 People are less generous, especially to those who
are not part of their family.
 Scarcity of desirable goods leads to destructive
conflict.
Therefore, a framework of commonly accepted rules
is needed.

22. The Economic System
Fulfilling the desire for goods
to be able to live
a comfortable life

23. Respect for Ownership
Relationship between people and
possessions:
 Ownership of property as a social
convention
 Resolves disputes
 Ensures stability of possession

24. Transfer of Ownership
 Rights over goods can be transferred by consent.
Can give things to someone.
Can sell things to someone.
 Markets: Where ownership is transferred by exchange
 Origin of money: Convenient unit of exchange
 Division of labor and specialization
Cautions:
 Freedom should be accompanied by
responsibility.
 Freedom should be exercised within the bounds
of the law.

25. Performance of Promises
 “My word is my bond.”
 Society as moral
 Self-limitation - don’t be greedy
 Natural, rational expectations
 Trust people including strangers
Enables free trade between strangers

26. Economic Crimes
Theft, robbery, stealing, fraud
Denial of private property - nationalization
without compensation
Unreasonable and punitive taxation
Reneging on agreements - not paying
salaries or invoices
Breaking promises

27. Helpful Government Policies
Establish and maintain a simple legal
framework for the free market.
 Set up laws regarding contracts and
guarding against theft and fraud.
 Maintain an independent judiciary.
 Keep central banks independent.
 Limit taxation.
 Minimize bureaucracy and corruption.

28. 2 Incompatible Syndromes
Commercial moral syndrome
Shun force
Voluntary agreements
Be honest
Collaborate with strangers
Compete
Respect contracts
Use initiative and enterprise
Be open to novelty
Be efficient
Promote convenience
Dissent for the task
Invest for productivity
Be industrious
Be thrifty
Be optimistic
Guardian moral syndrome
Shun trading
Exert prowess
Be obedient and disciplined
Be exclusive
Respect hierarchy
Be loyal
Adhere to tradition
Treasure honor
Be ostentatious
Enjoy leisure
Deceive to achieve tasks
Take vengeance
Show fortitude
Dispense largesse
Be fatalistic

29. Civil Society
Fulfiling the desire for social
position and power

30. Civil Society
Offers opportunities for people to make a difference and
offer a unique contribution.
Includes many types of institutions:
Politics, businesses, charities, local government, religion, schools,
hospitals, etc.
Abides by laws.
Allows for freedom of speech, movement, living, career,
Honors people based on merit.

31. Crimes against Civil Society
Achieving position illegitimately
Murder, coups
Nepotism
Cronyism
Corruption, bribery
Discrimination in the public sector
Totalitarianism

32. Helpful Government Policies
Maintain an independent judiciary.
Maintain roads, electricity, water supply,
sewers.
Provide for national defense.
Offer a safety net.
Caution: Government should protect people’s
way of life but not engage in social
engineering.

33. Educational system
Fulfilling the desire for knowledge
and understanding of the
world we inhabit

34. What Is Education?
Transaction between the generations
that initiates children into the world
which they are to inhabit
Transfer of knowledge and skills
 Most fundamentally, learning to live
humanly

35. Two Types of Education
Education at home:
How to behave
How to live a spiritual life
How to think, but not what to think or believe
Skills such as swimming, gardening, house
maintenance, money management
Education at school:
History, literature, language, religion
Specialized knowledge and skills
More complex thinking

36. Educational Crimes
Failing to pass on the wisdom of the ages
Dumbing down information
Indoctrinating students
Graduating students who lack
qualifications and skills
Giving information without values,
purpose, or meaning

37. Helpful Government Policies
Independent and self-governing, not
controlled by the state
Financed by fees, scholarships, vouchers
Free to specialize and set curricula
Not for indoctrination - religious or political
Prepare students for exams set by
universities and other professional bodies

38. Religion
To satisfy the desire to worship

39. Realm of Religion
Acknowledgement of dependence on a
superhuman being expressed through rituals
and worship
Concern with questions of meaning of life,
right and wrong behavior, salvation
Rituals to give meaning and sanctification to
rites of passage such as marriage

40. Religious Crimes
 Idolatry
Mistaking the relative for the absolute
 Sectarianism
 Bigotry
 Militant fundamentalism

41. Helpful Government Policies
 Allow religious freedom.
 Enable religious communities to be
involved in law making, education, and
values.

42. Summary
Human desire Supportive
social system
Crimes in this
realm
Experience love Family Adultery
Material things Economy Stealing
Social position and
authority
Civil society Murder
Knowledge and skillsEducation Falsehood,
indoctrination
Worship Religion Idolatry

43. Principles of Good Governance
Related to Spiritual Principles
Society of owners
Blessing of dominion over creation
Do not steal/misuse public money
Society of market relationships
Blessing of ethical relationships
Do not have immoral sexual relations
Society as a moral realm
Blessing of mind/body unity
Do not hurt a person’s heart

44. Adapted by Joy Pople from a
presentation by William Haines
Universal Peace Federation
www.upf.org