In late April, protesters gathered outside the office of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to demand an end to the economic shut down. At the time, a reporter asked Cuomo:
These are regular people who are not getting a paycheck and they’re saying that they don’t have time to wait for all of this testing and they need to get back to work in order to feed their families. Their savings is running out, they don’t have another week, they’re not getting answers, so their point is the cure can’t be worse than the illness itself, what is you’re response to them?
Cuomo responded by saying:
The illness is death, what is worse than death?
To Cuomo and his ilk, which is everyone who supports the economic shut down in order to “save lives,” avoiding death is the paramount value. But avoiding death is not the same as living.
Consider: North Koreans endure starvation diets, slave labor camps, and complete government control over their lives. While they aren’t dead, no rational person would claim that they are living as human beings. They are merely existing. And they are doing so on a sub-human level.
Living as a human being means more than existing. It means the freedom to choose one’s values and the means for attaining them. It means the freedom to pursue happiness.
The economic shut down has destroyed the pursuit of happiness. It has forced businesses to close, regardless of the judgment and desires of the owners. In the process, it has destroyed the dreams–the pursuit of happiness–of countless individuals. But, Cuomo would say, at least they aren’t dead.
The economic shut down has thrown tens of millions out of work, forcing them to deplete their savings and retirement accounts. Their plans and dreams–their pursuit of happiness–are being destroyed. But, Cuomo would say, at least they aren’t dead.
But Cuomo and his cohorts have it completely wrong. Life is not about avoiding suffering, misery, and death. It is about pursuing values and enjoying them. Life is about pursuing happiness.
And the pursuit of happiness is what the economic shut down has prohibited. The government closed restaurants and bars, prohibiting us from enjoying a nice meal outside of our home. It closed movie theaters and prohibited sporting events, preventing us from the enjoyment of entertainment and athletics. It banned large gatherings, even on our own property, prohibiting us from enjoying the company of family and friends. And while enjoyment has been stripped from our lives, at least, Cuomo would say, we aren’t dead.
But there are worse things than death. Existing without the possibility of happiness is not living. To be told that we must endure endless suffering and misery in order to save lives is the grossest of contradictions. To exist without the freedom to pursue happiness is worse than death. It is a “living death.” To paraphrase Patrick Henry, give me the freedom to pursue happiness or give me death.