One of the great curiosities of the modern era is the idea that so-called socially progressive policies are generally held to be good for the downtrodden. Nobody worth taking seriously ever thought so before, but it’s held to be a fact these days.

However, loosening the controls on social behavior has the same effect as loosening controls on the market: the strong gain at the expense of the weak.

When banks are deregulated, the rich get richer at the expense of the poor. When sexual mores are relaxed those with more sexual capital totally dominate the market. Furthermore, those better able to control themselves and live a disciplined family lifestyle with minimal pressure have an enormous advantage over those who give in to temptation. This is why marriage has collapsed for large segments of society. Socially progressive policies not only tolerating but promoting an “anything goes” form of sexuality victimize those who need some external controls on their behavior.

Same goes for feminist policies promoting “equal” relationships between husband and wife. For most people, these relationships simply don’t work. Most need clearly defined gender roles that take natural human tendencies into account. Without them they become confused, dissatisfied and demoralized.

So when I hear people say they believe in social justice, and use that as a justification for a laissez-faire attitude toward social mores, I tend to think they’re either cynical, evil bastards or hopeless fools. Social justice and social liberalism are inimical to each other. This doesn’t mean that people should be strictly controlled in all aspects of life, but rather that there should be some balance in the matter. While there will always be people who are by nature sexually ambitious or deviant, they shouldn’t be held up as examples to the masses.

Why progressives can’t see this was long a mystery to me. I thought that maybe it was because they live isolated lives, but I’m not sure that’s true, because a lot of urban liberals have conservative, small town roots, and plenty have experienced their share of family dysfunction.

Recently, I’ve come to see it as a matter of faith. A large segment of our population has a religious belief in what are called “progressive” values, nurtured by thousands of hours in front of the family altar: the TV set. What we are seeing in contemporary America is the fruits of a false religion. When progressives rail against religious fundamentalists, they are blind to the fact that they are as much religious fanatics as anyone. When they poke fun at Evangelical creationists, they ignore gaping holes in their own reasoning, and they react with all the fury of a zealot if one dares to gently point out how the facts contradict their beliefs.

What we are dealing with in the West is, above all, a crisis of faith. This is why people are so confused about simple truths, and so willing to believe black is white, up is down and two plus two equals five.