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Values Virtues, by John Miller

    We live in a conflicted society where people expect to get value for goods and services, but want to ignore values and standards—which is just another way of saying that they want to do whatever they please whenever it pleases them. The reality is that you cannot have it both ways. Good old fashioned values are virtuous: When people commit to them, consistency, reliability, and dependability result that enable them to produce goods and services of value.
    We live in a conflicted society where people expect to get value for goods and services, but want to ignore values and standards—which is just another way of saying that they want to do whatever they please whenever it pleases them.
    The reality is that you cannot have it both ways. Perhaps, the example of heirloom furniture that we discussed last week will illustrate the reason. Most people would agree that the handcrafted, solid walnut bedroom set we described has substantial value.
     The notion that such a valuable piece of furniture could be cost effectively built by a bunch of craftsmen with a “whatever” and “whenever” attitude is ridiculous.  Craftsmen who do “whatever” they want “whenever” they want to will not be able to produce a masterpiece with value.
     Here is the reason why:     Imagine a shop where the craftsmen show up for work “whenever” they feel like it and make the hand crafted beds out of “whatever” suits their fancy. All wood comes from trees so anything should work. Why not make the legs out of pine and the headboard out of poplar—who needs walnut? Who cares?
    You know it: The customer! The notion that a craftsman could successfully build an heirloom of value with a “whenever whatever” approach is laughable. However, what some demand of others, they are often unwilling to do themselves.
    The type of people who are capable of producing goods and services of value recognize that there is an inseparable connection between value produced and a commitment to personal values.
    In other words, there is virtue in values: Honesty, integrity, discipline, and self-control are all values that produce consistency— standards, if you will.
     Think about it. An honest craftsman would never make a bed out of any wood other than that which the customer wanted. His integrity prevents him from showing up late and short changing his employer. His self-control and discipline make him a master at his craft. All these add up to producing a quality product at a reasonable cost—that’s value, and it is connected to, or the result of, the values of the individual.
     C.S. Lewis addressed this connection in an essay that discusses whether there is objective right and wrong: “But the most remarkable thing is this. Whenever you find a man who says he does not believe in a real Right and Wrong, you will find the same man going back on this a moment later. He may break his promise to you, but if you try breaking one to him he will be complaining ‘It’s not fair’ before you can say Jack Robinson.”
    Good old fashioned values are virtuous: When people commit to them, consistency, reliability, and dependability result   that enable them to produce goods and services of value.
 

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