Traditional Values: Good or Bad? (user search)
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  Traditional Values: Good or Bad? (search mode)
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Question: Are Traditional Values good or bad for society?
#1
Good
 
#2
Bad
 
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Total Voters: 57

Author Topic: Traditional Values: Good or Bad?  (Read 10943 times)
angus
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« on: October 03, 2012, 11:40:07 AM »

Are Traditional Values good or bad for society?

Depends upon the society, and the values, and your definition of good and bad.  Collectivism and respect for the elders, for example, has held China together for thousands of years, but it has also left them with some pretty cruel masters from time to time.  The German tradition of industry and efficiency has brought about some fantastic labor-saving devices, but it has also laid waste to the European continent.  Our own tradition of independence and expediency have given the world great ideas, but those same traditions have given the world Fast Food. 

Societies are held together, for better or worse, by their traditions.  I posit that the fundamental objective measure of "good" is the longevity of the society itself.  In that metric, the traditional values can go either way.  The Amerindians laughed at the Dutch traders who thought they could own land, but it was their own value system, which respected nature, that helped bring about their demise.  Yankees value wealth and entrepreneurship, and that tradition has made our nation great and strong, but it has also caused us to concentrate wealth in such a way that our nation is now crumbling.  Over four thousand bridges in Pennsylvania alone, for example, are considered structurally deficient, but our society's tradition of respecting individual responsibility inhibits the legislature from taking steps necessary to repair or replace them. 

It isn't so simple as the question implies, and I don't think the question, as phrased, has a one-word answer.
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