Bradizza Lectures on Conflicting Ideas of Government

By: Brooke Biolo
Posted In: News

On Oct. 27, 2010 Dr. Bradizza, a political science and American government professor at Salve, gave a lecture titled “FDR vs. the founders”. Bradizza spoke about the original plans for government as set forth by the founders and the way Franklin Delanor Roosevelt’s New Deal and the ideas of the progressive era conflicted with these plans.

Bradizza started his speech talking about the founders and their ideas, such as having limited government to keep from violating natural rights, self-ownership and the idea that all humans are imperfect and rational animals, he said.

He then went on to show the conflicting side of the argument. Progressive era ideas argued for reform of some of the original ideas set forth by the founders, because America was in a new economic situation and industrialization was growing rapidly. Progressives felt that the government’s lack of action could endanger our country instead of helping it. FDR believed not only that people have the right to pursue things like education, food, clothing and sufficient wages, but that the people actually have a right to these things.

Bradizza said the government programs are like “boiling a frog”. If the temperature of the water is slowly raised, the frog will not jump out even if he knows he is going to die. In other words, the government, therefore, can slowly become corrupt right before our eyes. With the help of FDR and the progressive thinkers, the frog was “dropped into boiling water,” said Bradizza, and America was able to see just how corrupt it had become.

Overall, Bradizza gave an intellectual lecture about the conflict between the views of our founding fathers and those of FDR and progressive era people. He spoke of the founder’s view of limited government versus the progressive view of a more strict government.