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The Proper Role of Government
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24 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1968
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About the author
Ezra Taft Benson
119 books71 followersThe thirteenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1985 until his death and was United States Secretary of Agriculture for both of the administrations of U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
On October 7, 1943, both Benson and Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985) became members of the church's Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, filling two vacancies created by the deaths of apostles that summer. Because Kimball was the older of the two, he was given seniority over Benson in the Quorum. Succession to the presidency of the church is by chronological order of ordination to apostleship, allowing Spencer W. Kimball to become president of the church years earlier than Benson. Upon Spencer W. Kimball's death in 1985, Benson became the president of the church.
Benson suffered poor health in the last years of his life from the effects of blood clots in the brain, strokes, and heart attacks, and was rarely seen publicly. He was hospitalized in 1992 and 1993 with pneumonia.
Benson died of congestive heart failure in his Salt Lake City apartment at the age of 94. Funeral services were held June 4, 1994 in the Salt Lake Tabernacle under the direction of Gordon B. Hinckley. He was buried near his birthplace in Whitney, Idaho, at the Whitney City Cemetery.
On October 7, 1943, both Benson and Spencer W. Kimball (1895–1985) became members of the church's Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, filling two vacancies created by the deaths of apostles that summer. Because Kimball was the older of the two, he was given seniority over Benson in the Quorum. Succession to the presidency of the church is by chronological order of ordination to apostleship, allowing Spencer W. Kimball to become president of the church years earlier than Benson. Upon Spencer W. Kimball's death in 1985, Benson became the president of the church.
Benson suffered poor health in the last years of his life from the effects of blood clots in the brain, strokes, and heart attacks, and was rarely seen publicly. He was hospitalized in 1992 and 1993 with pneumonia.
Benson died of congestive heart failure in his Salt Lake City apartment at the age of 94. Funeral services were held June 4, 1994 in the Salt Lake Tabernacle under the direction of Gordon B. Hinckley. He was buried near his birthplace in Whitney, Idaho, at the Whitney City Cemetery.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
February 26, 2021
Would that all people read this.
August 28, 2016
Benson expresses a classical American conservative viewpoint of government. The government has the duty to protect individuals rights, liberty and property but no right to redistribute wealth or establish welfare programs. This relies on the premise that individuals rights are god-given and the government is created by men. Thus the government is not legitimized to infringe on the individuals rights.
The problem is that he just claims that these rights are given by God. If you don't already happen to believe that, there is nothing that Benson tries to convince you with. This fundamental premise is set completely arbitrarily. The same way you could just claim that collective rights, social equality and economic rights are god-given and you would end up with a completely different role of government.
Actually the individual right to personal property, that Benson claims is god-given and eternal, has been developed in the enlightenment merely 300 years ago. For most of its existence human communities have been living in sharing economies. Individual property is a socially constructed right that was needed by economic elites at the outset of the Industrial Revolution to cement their privileges in society. You don't believe that? Okay, let's have a debate, but please don't just claim that what you happen to believe is god-given.
Moreover, Benson relies in his argumentation on extensive quotes from Smith, Jefferson, Bastiat and others and he contributes very little argumentative value himself. Often he just says "as history has proven" without elaborating any further what he means or acknowledging that there are many different readings of history. The fact that he marks competing political ideas as "cancer" that have to be cut off from the political body is off putting and reminds me of the language that totalitarian regimes use to discredit their political enemies.
Overall, I don't think this is worth reading, unless you are a conservative American and you want to read something that reaffirms what you already believe.
The problem is that he just claims that these rights are given by God. If you don't already happen to believe that, there is nothing that Benson tries to convince you with. This fundamental premise is set completely arbitrarily. The same way you could just claim that collective rights, social equality and economic rights are god-given and you would end up with a completely different role of government.
Actually the individual right to personal property, that Benson claims is god-given and eternal, has been developed in the enlightenment merely 300 years ago. For most of its existence human communities have been living in sharing economies. Individual property is a socially constructed right that was needed by economic elites at the outset of the Industrial Revolution to cement their privileges in society. You don't believe that? Okay, let's have a debate, but please don't just claim that what you happen to believe is god-given.
Moreover, Benson relies in his argumentation on extensive quotes from Smith, Jefferson, Bastiat and others and he contributes very little argumentative value himself. Often he just says "as history has proven" without elaborating any further what he means or acknowledging that there are many different readings of history. The fact that he marks competing political ideas as "cancer" that have to be cut off from the political body is off putting and reminds me of the language that totalitarian regimes use to discredit their political enemies.
Overall, I don't think this is worth reading, unless you are a conservative American and you want to read something that reaffirms what you already believe.
February 14, 2009
I can now see more clearly why it takes a moral, educated people to be governed by our Constitution. If people do not value truth more than convenience, and principle more than entertainment, this form of government truly is inadequate to govern them.
This book helped me to see that we are far more Socialist as a nation than I had before understood.
This book helped me to see that we are far more Socialist as a nation than I had before understood.
July 6, 2017
Short and good description on Role of government.
April 2, 2014
This book is a very short, powerful essay on exactly what you expect--the proper role of government. The author shows very clearly the fundamentals of government and compares the good--the proper roles of government--with the bad--the improper roles that have entrenched themselves in modern America. He quotes Frederic Bastiat and Thomas Paine and John Locke and Thomas Jefferson and George Washington quite a bit. My favorite bit is his test for government programs that all citizens would do well to implement before supporting any government action or law: Ask yourself whether or not you would have the authority as an individual to forcibly take life, liberty or property away from one who breaks the proposed law. Only when the answer is yes can you delegate such power to your agent, the government, to do so on your behalf. Awesome.
February 19, 2009
This is a quick read but you will want to spend some time with it because it is so meaty. Benson's arguments are very solid as he describes the role of government and why we have them. I especially love the examples about how taking from one group and giving to another is really legalized plunder. He got some of his ideas from Frederic Bastiat who he quotes extensively (Benson is much easier to read). It makes so much sense that our leaders and the way we vote should be based on principles and not just issues.
May 18, 2012
Definitely worth reading. It is short and to the point. Even if you don't agree with everything in the book it is very informative on the government and the constitution.
May 22, 2016
The most succinct treatise of our government's ills, and how to fix them!
October 2, 2008
I have been so concerned with the way our government is being run. The foriegn policy, the economy, open borders, the North American Union. There is so much out there that needs to be understood for what it is. I have read this pamphlet before, but I took it off my shelf and read it again today. It is AWESOME!! If you wonder what you should vote for or against read President Benson's talk. He gives you some guidelines or questions to ask yourself that will help you to know whether or not the laws they are trying to pass are constitutional. Oh, and yes he reiterates the importance of that divinely instituted document!
Currently reading
April 21, 2012A most excellent paper! Well researched!
Just for an example, a sentence from the Alabama Constitution:
“That the sole object and only legitimate end of government is to protect the citizen in the enjoyment of life, liberty, and property, and when the government assumes other functions it is usurpation and oppression.” (Art. 1, Sec. 35)
Just for an example, a sentence from the Alabama Constitution:
“That the sole object and only legitimate end of government is to protect the citizen in the enjoyment of life, liberty, and property, and when the government assumes other functions it is usurpation and oppression.” (Art. 1, Sec. 35)
April 24, 2016
So important.
September 16, 2022
An interesting and very logical explanation of President Benson's views on the principles of government. I liked how clearly and logically he explains his views, and I think it is a well-organized, reasonable, and thoughtful position that makes a lot of sense on paper. It contains some very interesting and good quotations from the Founding Fathers and others which I enjoyed reading.
Unfortunately, government today (and in President Benson's day) is in practice wildly different than the idea of proper government that is expressed in this message. For me it is hard to reconcile the idea of what government ideally "should" be and how it "should" operate with the question of how do you as a citizen effectively operate on good principles of government in a system that is wildly different than what is ideal? The practical considerations of dealing with the reality in which I actually live make me question in some respects the feasibility of pursuing the ideal that President Benson sets forth in this message.
For example, I don't believe that the trends of world governments toward being more or less welfare states is reversible, if for no other reason than that the majority of people don't seem to want that trend to be reversed. Most people seem to expect and demand that governments do some things for them that in President Benson's view are not the legitimate operations of government. Unless a significant majority of people were to change course in their own views and their demands of their elected representatives then I don't think these trends are likely to be reversed, and that seems extremely unlikely to me.
I don't agree with everything President Benson states in here, but I think he has some good things to say and this was worth reading and thinking about.
Unfortunately, government today (and in President Benson's day) is in practice wildly different than the idea of proper government that is expressed in this message. For me it is hard to reconcile the idea of what government ideally "should" be and how it "should" operate with the question of how do you as a citizen effectively operate on good principles of government in a system that is wildly different than what is ideal? The practical considerations of dealing with the reality in which I actually live make me question in some respects the feasibility of pursuing the ideal that President Benson sets forth in this message.
For example, I don't believe that the trends of world governments toward being more or less welfare states is reversible, if for no other reason than that the majority of people don't seem to want that trend to be reversed. Most people seem to expect and demand that governments do some things for them that in President Benson's view are not the legitimate operations of government. Unless a significant majority of people were to change course in their own views and their demands of their elected representatives then I don't think these trends are likely to be reversed, and that seems extremely unlikely to me.
I don't agree with everything President Benson states in here, but I think he has some good things to say and this was worth reading and thinking about.
May 21, 2020
Starting with the dictionary-defined flaw that we should all agree on, Benson speaks of socialism as if synonymous with "feeding the poor" but fails to mention economic subsidies.
He also gives a fictitious history of the fall of the Soviet Union - affording no credit to the Balkans, the Russian people, Gorbachev, mass executions and national hunger at the hands of Stalin, or Stalin's corruption *of* socialism itself - and attributes the entire collapse to the very concept of socialism. By this logic, the Soviet Union fell because it fed the poor.
This is the corrupted proof he uses to claim we should not have welfare programs. He does NOT extend this to any talking points against energy subsidies, pharmaceutical subsidies, and doesn't even discuss the agricultural subsidies that occurred while he was Secretary of Agriculture. He doesn't mention that Russia used similar tactics to manipulate global oil markets, and even though those subsidies in America have cost far more money than food stamps for the working class.
Benson doesn't argue against the New Deal by pointing to any plateau in GDP, rise in unemployment, or correlating decay in "national character" - just by pointing out that it's approaching socialism. He makes no effort to demonstrate that Stalin's version of Socialism and Roosevelt's New Deals are equivalent, he simply takes the similarity for granted under the umbrella term "socialism."
His spin of American history is equally flawed. He forgets the economic stagnation that occurred at the end of the 19th century when capitalism pooled America's money into the hands of the railroad and banking families, and the legislative redistribution that democrats and republicans universally agreed needed to happen for our nation to grow.
There is a reason Reagan distanced himself from these extremist views near the end of Benson's time as secretary of agriculture. Reagan believed welfare had limits - not existential flaws. He believed America outdistanced Russia by *taking care* of it's people - not by refusing to. Benson's religion often preaches that the forces of evil assume the appearance of good, calling for members to assume multiple perspectives, think critically, and avoid being deceived. This book fails to follow that advice. For the millions of Latter Day Saints who admire Benson's theological wisdom, it's important to note that his economic wisdom struggled to keep pace.
Perhaps the best reading one can find in this pamphlet are the Frederich Bastiat quotes, but what any 19th century French philosopher would no doubt have been quick to point out is, refusing to feed the poor has had a consequence or two for at least one aristocracy. Ahem. One might as well read Bastiat's "The Law" on his/her own.
He also gives a fictitious history of the fall of the Soviet Union - affording no credit to the Balkans, the Russian people, Gorbachev, mass executions and national hunger at the hands of Stalin, or Stalin's corruption *of* socialism itself - and attributes the entire collapse to the very concept of socialism. By this logic, the Soviet Union fell because it fed the poor.
This is the corrupted proof he uses to claim we should not have welfare programs. He does NOT extend this to any talking points against energy subsidies, pharmaceutical subsidies, and doesn't even discuss the agricultural subsidies that occurred while he was Secretary of Agriculture. He doesn't mention that Russia used similar tactics to manipulate global oil markets, and even though those subsidies in America have cost far more money than food stamps for the working class.
Benson doesn't argue against the New Deal by pointing to any plateau in GDP, rise in unemployment, or correlating decay in "national character" - just by pointing out that it's approaching socialism. He makes no effort to demonstrate that Stalin's version of Socialism and Roosevelt's New Deals are equivalent, he simply takes the similarity for granted under the umbrella term "socialism."
His spin of American history is equally flawed. He forgets the economic stagnation that occurred at the end of the 19th century when capitalism pooled America's money into the hands of the railroad and banking families, and the legislative redistribution that democrats and republicans universally agreed needed to happen for our nation to grow.
There is a reason Reagan distanced himself from these extremist views near the end of Benson's time as secretary of agriculture. Reagan believed welfare had limits - not existential flaws. He believed America outdistanced Russia by *taking care* of it's people - not by refusing to. Benson's religion often preaches that the forces of evil assume the appearance of good, calling for members to assume multiple perspectives, think critically, and avoid being deceived. This book fails to follow that advice. For the millions of Latter Day Saints who admire Benson's theological wisdom, it's important to note that his economic wisdom struggled to keep pace.
Perhaps the best reading one can find in this pamphlet are the Frederich Bastiat quotes, but what any 19th century French philosopher would no doubt have been quick to point out is, refusing to feed the poor has had a consequence or two for at least one aristocracy. Ahem. One might as well read Bastiat's "The Law" on his/her own.
March 19, 2011
There must be numerous versions of this out there. My library copy has the same cover as this edition- The Proper Role and Improper Role of Government, but without the words "and Improper Role." It also has additional credits on the bottom crediting the compilation to Hans V. Andersen, Jr. Inside, Governments May Be Used to Preserve or Destroy Freedom by H. Verlan Anderson is included after the Benson article.
I agree with much of Benson's philosophy of smaller government, but disagree with many of his specifics that basically anything beyond police and army is "legalized plunder" by the government. I think his political beliefs have done great harm to Utah politics.
The H. Verlan Anderson article is even worse. His quiz for his law students is political extremism presented as objective truth. If you believe in anything that a communist ever believed, you are that percentage "communist" and misled. And thus, a bad Mormon. It's an arrogant, divisive philosophy that is contrary to public statements by the church about true principles being found in all parties.
I agree with much of Benson's philosophy of smaller government, but disagree with many of his specifics that basically anything beyond police and army is "legalized plunder" by the government. I think his political beliefs have done great harm to Utah politics.
The H. Verlan Anderson article is even worse. His quiz for his law students is political extremism presented as objective truth. If you believe in anything that a communist ever believed, you are that percentage "communist" and misled. And thus, a bad Mormon. It's an arrogant, divisive philosophy that is contrary to public statements by the church about true principles being found in all parties.
May 20, 2017
This is definitely worth reading, despite when it was actually published. The message and principles that President Benson teaches in this book are simple, basic, and precise.
President Benson's teachings of moral, just laws for social, economic, and political are of great value even in our times in the 21st Century. The ever growing need to restore our republican form of government in the United States could never be better than now. We need to cast off the chains of socialism and the false ideals of Marxist doctrine. Socialism and the Marxist think-tanks are the antitheses to freedom and the ideals of American liberty.
Socialism seeks to replace God by Whom freedom flows. Human rights come from God, and not from man or government. Socialism is Anti-God and Anti-Christ, and seeks to overthrow and replace both the Father and the Son.
I especially enjoyed what President Benson had to say in regards to removing the welfare programs that are run and promoted by politicians and bureaucrats alike: to phase out them out over time. That's been my thinking about these government welfare programs in recent years, because logic says that to drop them all off in the blink of an eye would prove devastating to our economy.
President Benson's teachings of moral, just laws for social, economic, and political are of great value even in our times in the 21st Century. The ever growing need to restore our republican form of government in the United States could never be better than now. We need to cast off the chains of socialism and the false ideals of Marxist doctrine. Socialism and the Marxist think-tanks are the antitheses to freedom and the ideals of American liberty.
Socialism seeks to replace God by Whom freedom flows. Human rights come from God, and not from man or government. Socialism is Anti-God and Anti-Christ, and seeks to overthrow and replace both the Father and the Son.
I especially enjoyed what President Benson had to say in regards to removing the welfare programs that are run and promoted by politicians and bureaucrats alike: to phase out them out over time. That's been my thinking about these government welfare programs in recent years, because logic says that to drop them all off in the blink of an eye would prove devastating to our economy.
October 8, 2013
I was initially surprised at all the discussion of the Church of LDS on here, until I discovered the pamphlet's author, Ezra Taft Benson, had presided over that church until his death in 1985. In light of that knowledge, his politics might be comfortably compared to those of recent GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Here, Benson spends the first sections establishing the nationalist viewpoint, and the second half of his text enumerating the reasons why America should fear and shun socialism, accompanied by a few colorful comparisons to the Soviet system of government.
Although the pamphlet was written in 1968, and as a result many of its immediate points of reference are now obscure, it still makes points that are completely valid in the modern political climate, and extensively draws on the writings of French liberal theorist Frederic Bastiat, as well as those of American pioneers Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine.
Although the pamphlet was written in 1968, and as a result many of its immediate points of reference are now obscure, it still makes points that are completely valid in the modern political climate, and extensively draws on the writings of French liberal theorist Frederic Bastiat, as well as those of American pioneers Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine.
April 22, 2009
Every American needs to read this!
I wanted to quote a small bit in this review that struck out to me most...but looking back through The Proper Role of Government, I can't decide. Everything he said struck me as true that I'm just going to settle with his ending words:
"All right-thinking Americans should now take their stand. So I urge all Americans to put their courage to the test. Be firm in our convictions that our cause is just. Reaffirm our faith in all things for which true Americans have always stood.
There is much work to be done. The time is short. Let us begin - in earnest - now and may God bless our efforts, I humbly pray."
(Published in 1968)
I wanted to quote a small bit in this review that struck out to me most...but looking back through The Proper Role of Government, I can't decide. Everything he said struck me as true that I'm just going to settle with his ending words:
"All right-thinking Americans should now take their stand. So I urge all Americans to put their courage to the test. Be firm in our convictions that our cause is just. Reaffirm our faith in all things for which true Americans have always stood.
There is much work to be done. The time is short. Let us begin - in earnest - now and may God bless our efforts, I humbly pray."
(Published in 1968)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 18, 2009
I agree with quite a bit of the basic principle in this pamphlet, but I am troubled by the logic. He states "(I) believe that governments were instituted of God for the benefit of man; and that he holds men accountable for their acts in relation to them, both in making laws and administering them, for the good and safety of society," but then his arguments rest on the fact that government is instituted by men and only possess the powers entrusted to them by the governed. If, in fact, governments are instituted of God for the benefit of man, that would be the only way to justify welfare systems.
April 27, 2011
Ezra Taft Benson served in various government capacities, including serving on Eisenhower's cabinet as Sec'y of Agriculture until his death in 1994. He was an outspoken critic of socialism in all its forms and this pamphlet really speaks to his political philosophy as well as giving a very broad history of tax policy, welfare, etc. He successfully brings to light the perversions of authority and ignorance of the original intent of founders and statesmen that has plagued the U.S. for the past hundred or so years. Overall, I'd recommend this short treatise as a great primer on liberty from one of it's great champions.
February 14, 2012
I feel like this article is the modern version (well, relatively speaking) of Thomas Paine's "Common Sense". Benson gives a compelling argument using everyday illustrations and examples of the restriction of freedom due to legal plunder. He's drawing on and quotes the works of French economist and philosopher Frederic Bastiat. This article was published in 1968. The common sense principles of why men create a government in the first place and what happens when those selected to represent step outside the powers granted could not be more relevant to us today. This is a critical contribution to The Great Debate about government.
February 24, 2011
Updated 2-24-11: I read this for the second time, also watched the video at jbs.org. I was struck by how pertinent the information is for today's political climate. They were aware of the principles of correct government policy then and we are farther away than at that point in time. I wish people would wake up, open their eyes, and see the peril we are in. The United States is nearly lost!
This is a must read for all LDS members and for anyone who cares about the United States. It is truly remarkable how thought provoking this pamphlet is.
This is a must read for all LDS members and for anyone who cares about the United States. It is truly remarkable how thought provoking this pamphlet is.
August 15, 2010
Should be required reading for every American, it will impact the way you see so much of what our government undertakes. There is such power in simmering things down to basic principles against which all actions can be measured. In conjunction with studying this, I highly recommend either reading or listening to a speech given by Arthur Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research and one who has studied extensively the idea of giving. Find the speech here: http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem...
August 26, 2008
Everyone in America should read this. If you understand the need and role of government then you won't vote stupid, and you won't ever wonder how to vote again. He teaches principles, not facts. You can read this online somewhere. It's really short. I've acted out the sheriff story many times to my children and to seminary students, etc. In five minutes everyone from the five year old to the teenager gets it!
April 3, 2012
A short but hard hitting synposis of the PRINCIPLES underlying good government. How do you tell if the government should be acting in any particular role? This short treatise gives you the tools to understand whether or not anything should be a function of the government. Along with the Constitution and Declaration of Independance, his should be mantatory reading in any high school government class.
June 13, 2014
The philosophy of this manifesto should be central to all Americans regardless of age, race, position, or any other such demographic within the United States of America. It serves as a primer to a more serious study of moral law and the proper role of government. Through careful review of Benson's sources and their respective literary works, a powerful message can be delivered to the heart of mankind regarding morality and the true nature of our existence.
May 27, 2008
I read this book on Saturday at our cousin's house and we proceeded to talk about the constitution and our government the whole rest of the day! It's a quick read that shed a different light for me on the direction our government is heading. Having total respect for the author, it's given me lots to think about!
November 15, 2008
A must read for every single American, particularly if you are a governement official. In this document we find the answers to all our countries ills. If we started to live the advice layed out here, I wonder if our country could not be turned around within one presidential term. I would absolutely love to see a political debate between Ezra Taft Benson and Karl Marx.
May 18, 2013
A must read! Member of the LDS church or not, whether right-wing, left-wing, center or independent, you must pick this up and learn about how the government should be run, what is it's role and what is not, the dangers and truths about communism/socialism and what we should do to preserve America and our freedoms. Profound! Also a short, quick read.
February 9, 2013
This book is a masterpiece of sound reasoning on the proper role of any government, especially ours (the U.S.) under our God-given Constitution. One of my very favorites! I gifted it to several of my neighbors after attending the last Republican caucus (I am not a Republican), and will continue doing that.
January 22, 2008
A great little booklet that taught me more about our government and what it is meant to be than any other I have read. If the principles in this book were followed, our freedoms would be much more secure than they now are.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews