The Kitchen Debate
Lecture of Dr. Nikolas K. Gvosdev
The term "the kitchen debate" refers to an incident that took place in Moscow in 1959, when American Vice-President Richard M. Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita S. Khrushchev, touring a world's fair-style exhibition, engaged each other in polemics over the superiority of their respective social and political systems. (It took place in the American pavilion, in the section detailing a typical American kitchen complete with all appliances, hence the name, "kitchen debate.") The United States has evolved a system which places a high priority on individual liberty with some minimal guarantees for social and economic protection, while the Soviet Union at that point guaranteed a wide range of social and economic programs, but through the imposition of rigid social and political controls over the population.
For purposes of our class discussion, we are going to assume that there are two societies, one "libertarian" (based on civil and political rights negatively defined) and one "egalitarian" (based on social and economic rights positively defined).
POINT: A "libertarian" society gives no guarantees to its citizens, leaving people vulnerable to starvation and economic exploitation in the search for survival. The only freedom that is guaranteed is the freedom to die.
COUNTERPOINT: A "libertarian" society encourages responsibility and initiative. People are free to give to charity out of their own free will, rather than having the government compel such behavior. Moreover, an "egalitarian" society diminishes the freedom of all--it makes individuals dependent on the government for handouts.
POINT: An "egalitarian" society creates the opportunity for dictatorship and political oppression, because people dependent upon the government for their daily bread will not be in a position to criticize its policies.
COUNTERPOINT: The homeless and unemployed in a "libertarian" society don't have any real input in the government anyway.
POINT: In a "libertarian" society, people are free to express their opinions or choose their lifestyles or economic options. An "egalitarian" society usually has to impose controls over its population to guarantee a basic standard of living for everyone.
COUNTERPOINT: One must have resources to enjoy freedoms. Usually in libertarian societies minorities--ethnic, cultural, economic--lack access to resources to enjoy these freedoms in the same amount as members of the majority. An "egalitarian" society gives everyone a basic guarantee.
COUNTER-COUNTERPOINT: In order to give everyone a basic standard, the choices that are made available to all has to decrease.
POINT: In "libertarian" societies, opportunities for vast gaps in income exist.
COUNTERPOINT: "Egalitarian" societies are based on envy, that if everyone can't enjoy a high standard of living, that no one should.
POINT: In an "egalitarian" society, in order to keep people equal, creativity and independence usually has to be stifled. This prevents innovations and discoveries which can lead to economic growth.
COUNTERPOINT: "Egalitarian" societies also prevent major failures from occurring. For every successful inventor in an egalitarian system, there is usually a failed company that plunged families into poverty.
POINT: In an "egalitarian" society, the state, if it is paying for education, has the right to demand that the person receiving the education take whatever assignment is offered to him or her after graduation, even though it may not be what that person wants. For example, a doctor might be sent to a remote rural area. This infringes on that person's freedom.
COUNTERPOINT: Since in an egalitarian society a person receives aid from the state, he or she must be prepared to give back in service. This is how an egalitarian society ensures that all citizens have access to basic services. The free market only directs services to where profit can be found.
PRINCIPAL ARGUMENT IN FAVOR OF LIBERTARIAN SOCIETIES: Freedom for the individual creates a society based on achievement and incentive and encourages development and progress. Inequalities in wealth and social position that are generated as a result are a necessary price to pay for liberty.
PRINCIPAL ARGUMENT IN FAVOR OF EGALITARIAN SOCIETIES: Guaranteeing everyone in society a basic standard of living allows for everyone to have a chance at self-fulfillment. If some people are held back, or if some people don't get the chance to do the things they want to do, or if people have to accept a higher level of social and political control over their lives, the important thing is that no one is left behind.
The fate of the engineer who wants to be in a rock band:
LIBERTARIAN SOCIETY: That engineer should be free to pursue his dream. (If his band flops, however, he still has to pay his bills)
EGALITARIAN SOCIETY: Society might have need of that engineer's skills--he has a responsibility to uphold. After all, it is not like he had to pay for engineering school!
These are just some basic points to consider.