assignment # 9

Differentiate state paternalism from personal paternalism.

State Paternalism refers to certain actions of the state or government in which they act in a "fatherly" manner towards the citizens even without consent or even to the unwillingness of the citizen. In line with this are paternalistic legistation that are made for the benefit of the people, for their own good and even to protect them against themselves. These include the following: riding a motorcycle without a helmet, gambling, homosexual sodomy, prostitution, polygamy, making and selling pornography, selling and using marijuana, practicing certain professions without a license (law, medicine, education, massage, hair-styling), purchasing blood or organs, suicide, assisting suicide, swimming at a beach without a lifeguard, refusing to participate in a mandatory insurance or pension plan. Paternalism protects people from themselves, as if their safety were more important than their liberty. (ref: http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/writing/paternal.htm)
Soft Paternalism is a political philosophy that believes that the state can “help you make the choices you would make for yourself".

Personal Paternalism refers to your own paternalistic actions over your loved ones, like a father-figure to your younger siblings and making important decisions in behalf of them, especially if they are still underaged.