The Ethologists’ UnpaidDebtsto Spencerand Sumner 287“Ideals,” the onetimeclergymanproclaims,“are necessarilyphantasms.Theyhaveno
basisin fact.”^103 Andhe goeson thateveryideal“is formedby givingup one’s holdon
realityand takinga flightintothe realmof fiction.”^104 Werewe to employthe termideals
strictlyas Platodoes,I wouldhaveto agree.WhenPlatoreferredto an ideaas an ideal,he
alludedto the ideato be understoodon the noumenalleveland not to be takenas any sort
of concretein phenomenalexistence.Yet thereis nothingwrongin having“ideals” as
AynRandspokeof them.Ideals,in Rand’s meaning,are rationalgoalsand valuesthata
moralpersonconsistentlypreservesand workstoward.ElsewhereSumnerwrites,“Dog-
maticidealslike perfectliberty,justice,or equality,especiallyif economicand not politi-
cal liberty,justice,and equalityare meant,can neverfurnishrationalor scientificmotives
of actionor startingpointsfor rationaleffort.Theycan neverenterinto scientificthinking
sincetheyadmitno analysisandcan be testedby no canonsof truth.Theyhaveno
footingin reality.... All thosewhotalk aboutthe ‘powerof ideas’ are moreor less under
thisfallacy.” Notethatby politicallibertyhe meansthe libertyof the nightwatchman
stateand that,by economicequality,he refersto governmentredistributionism.Terribly,
Sumnerconsidersthe idealsof politicallibertyto be capriciousin the end.
The formerpriestthenplaysintothe handsof everyanti-capitalistwhogrumblesthat
free-marketadvocatescast moralityand idealismasidein favorof cynical,amoralmateri-
alism.Sumnerthereuponpleadsno contestto one of the anti-capitalists’ favoritecharges.
It is the chargethatfree-marketerssupportcapitalismfor no reasonotherthanthatfree-
marketerselevateso-called“practicality” aboveany concernaboutscruplesor nobleaspi-
rations.In lieu of concedingthis falseassumption,Sumnerreallyshouldbe pointingout
thatfree-marketersunderstandthatcapitalismis the mostpalpablesociopolitical-eco-
nomicsystempreciselyon accountof its beingthe mosthumaneandvisionarysortof
society.Hencethe Yalesociologistoffers,“Seriousstudyof humansocietyshowsus that
we can neverdo anythingbut use and developthe opportunitieswhichare offeredto us
by the conditionsandconjuresof the moment.”^105 In contrastto conductingoneselfby
any firmmoralprinciples,“we need... to know,withthe greatestexactitude,whatis,
and thenplanto dealwiththe caseas it is by the mostapprovedmeans.”^106
“Means” thatare “mostapproved” by whom?Sumnerdoesnot extenda plausible
explanation.FollowingHume’s lead,this Yaleprofessorfirstrefusesto acknowledgethe
existenceof consistentethicalprinciples,and thenconcludesfromthis errantpremisethat
everyconcernaboutpersonalhonoris tenuousandlargelyillusory.Sumnerinterprets
rulesaboutgoodand evil as not beinga legitimatefieldof philosophicstudyfromwhich
menmayconceivablycaptureobjectivetruths.For him,ethicscan be nothingbut “mo-
tivesof action” that“are derived” from“dogmaticprecepts.. .”^107 Accordingly,“Ethics
belongto the folkwaysof timeandplace;theycan be keptsoundandvigorousonlyby
the constantreactionbetweentraditionalrule and the individualjudgment.”^108
But do not forgetthat suchdoggedepistemologicalSkepticsas Humeand Sumnerare
unableto operatein the absenceof applyingany normativerulesin decidingupontheir
actions.HenceSumnersomewhatrelentsthat menneedtheirownset of scruples.Despite
that,Sumnerrefrainsthathe developshis ownimplicitethicaljudgmentsfor one simple
reason.It is thatno one can helpbut live by a moralcode,despiteany andeverymoral
codebeinginescapablycapricious.Muchas we observedDavidHumedoingin Book
One,Sumnerthereuponadviseshis readersto conformunthinkinglyto whateverethical
codeis popularin theircurrentera and location.“... [T]hesecurrentrulesof actionwhich
are traditionalandacceptedin our societyshouldbe adoptedandobeyed.Thisis true,
however,onlybecauseit is impossiblefor nearlyall of us to investigatefor ourselvesand
win personalconvictions,and it is impossiblefor any of us to do so exceptin a few special
matters.”^109 In fact this Hume-influencedSkepticismshedssomelighton Sumner’s mis-
begottenexcoriationof rights.To someextentSumnerdid understandthatindividual