What is meant by the Pursuit of Happiness?

the AZEL PERSPECTIVE Commentary on Cuba's Future, U.S. Foreign Policy & Individual Freedoms - Issue 452 B

José Azel's latest books "On Freedom" and "Sobre La Libertad" are now available on Amazon. What is meant by the Pursuit of Happiness? (Previously published) Share Tweet Forward

What did the Founding Fathers mean to convey in the Declaration of Independence by spotlighting the Pursuit of Happiness as an inalienable right together with Life and Liberty. Apparently we are a very unhappy world. According to the data offered by Yuval Noah Harari in his provocative new book “Homo Deus - A brief History of Tomorrow,” more people commit suicide than are killed by soldiers, terrorists, and criminals combined. In 2012 about 56 million people died throughout the world; 120,000 were killed by war, 500,000 by crime, and 800,000 committed suicide. It is not as if we are terribly deprived and hungry. Today, for the first time in history, more people die from eating too much than from eating too little. In 2014, more than 2.1 billion people were overweight, compared to 850 million who suffered from malnutrition. In 2010, whereas famine and malnutrition combined killed about 1 million, obesity killed 3 million. Interestingly, in developed countries such as Switzerland, or France, with higher prosperity, comfort and security, about 25 persons per 100,000 commit suicide. In developing countries, suffering from poverty and instability, the suicide rate is about one person per 100,000. It appears that the timeless advice is true: money cannot make us happy. So, what about the pursuit of happiness? A novel approach to our collective unhappiness comes from the tiny Kingdom of Bhutan. In the 1970s, the Fourth Dragon King of Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, made an extraordinary statement for a head of state: “We do not believe in Gross National Product. Gross National Happiness is more important.” Bhutan then pioneered the concept of Gross National Happiness (GNH) which was enacted in the Kingdom’s 2008 Constitution. In contrast with Gross National Product (GDP) which measures economic output, the Gross National Happiness index purports to also measure net environmental impacts, the spiritual and cultural growth of citizens, mental and physical health, and the strength of the corporate and political systems of the nation. GNH emphasizes collective happiness and harmony with nature as the goal of governance, which philosophically fits nicely with Bhutan’s Buddhist culture and identity. Of course, any measure of GNH is intricate, complex, and rife with estimates and subjectivity. How exactly does one measure the spiritual and cultural growth of individuals? What makes one person happy may be totally indifferent to another. National happiness is difficult to measure. I do give Bhutan credit for trying; the country has developed a sophisticated index of nine domains that contribute to happiness: Psychological well-being, health, education, time use, cultural diversity, good governance, community vitality, ecological diversity, and living standards. My problem with Bhutan’s approach is that the goal is not just to measure happiness, but to integrate the GNH philosophy into public policy requiring government intervention. Supporters of the GNH index argue that GDP is an obsolete economic metric and that governments must replace it with GNH. Thus, making national happiness the responsibility of the government; this is antithetical to freedom. Consider the absurdity of Nicolas Maduro creating in Venezuela a Ministry of Happiness. Which brings me to my opening question: What did the United States Founding Fathers mean by the pursuit of happiness? The Declaration is explicitly clear that government should guarantee the right to the pursuit of happiness, not the right to happiness. In fact, as Noah Harari notes in his book, “Thomas Jefferson did not make the state responsible for its citizens’ happiness. Rather he sought only to limit the power of the state.” It is our right to pursue happiness our way, and the state should not get involved in our choices. The irony is that, while the right to the pursuit of happiness in the Declaration of Independence was intended as a restraint on the power of the state, it has been perverted into the right to happiness expanding state intervention. Government managed happiness is the philosophy behind the Gross National Happiness index, so, if anything makes us unhappy, the state should do something about it. This is precisely the opposite of what Jefferson meant by the right to the pursuit of happiness. Please let us know if you  this article. We welcome your feedback. Abrazos, Lily & José (click on the name to email Lily or Jose) José Azel, Ph.D. José Azel left Cuba in 1961 as a 13 year-old political exile in what has been dubbed Operation Pedro Pan - the largest unaccompanied child refugee movement in the history of the Western Hemisphere.   He is currently dedicated to the in-depth analyses of Cuba's economic, social and political state, with a keen interest in post-Castro-Cuba strategies. Dr. Azel was a Senior Scholar at the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies (ICCAS) at the University of Miami, Jose Azel has published extensively on Cuba related topics. In 2012 and 2015, Dr. Azel testified in the U.S. Congress on U.S.-Cuba Policy, and U.S. National Security.  He is a frequent speaker and commentator on these and related topics on local, national and international media.  He holds undergraduate and masters degrees in business administration and a Ph.D. in International Affairs from the University of Miami. José along with his wife Lily are avid skiers and adventure travelers.  In recent years they have climbed Grand Teton in Wyoming, trekked Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Machu Pichu in Peru.  They have also hiked in Tibet and in the Himalayas to Mt. Everest Base Camp. They cycled St. James Way (El Camino de Santiago de Compostela) and cycled alongside the Danube from Germany to Hungary and throughout southern France.  They have scuba dived in the Bay Islands off the Honduran coast and in the Galapagos Islands. Most recently, they rafted for 17 days 220 miles in the Grand Canyon. Their adventurers are normally dedicated to raise funds for causes that are dear to them.  Watch Joe & Lily summit Kilimanjaro. Books by Dr. José Azel José Azel’s writings are touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone who wishes to understand why countries do, or do not, progress will find in this book the best explanations. And, from these readings emerge numerous inferences: How and why do the good intentions of leftist collectivism lead countries to hell? Why is liberty not a sub product of prosperity, but rather one of its causes? If it was in my power, this work would be required reading for all college and university students, and I would also recommend its reading to all politicians, journalists, and policymakers. With his writings Azel accomplishes what was achieved in France by Frédéric Bastiat, and in the United States by Henry Hazlitt: Azel brings together common sense with intelligent observation, and academic substance. Stupendous, Carlos Alberto Montaner                                                                    BUY NOW Los escritos de José Azel están tocados por la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquiera que desee entender por qué los países progresan, o no, encontrará en este libro las mejores explicaciones. De estas lecturas surgen numerosas inferencias: ¿Cómo y por qué las buenas intenciones del colectivismo de izquierda llevan a los países al infierno? ¿Por qué la libertad no es un subproducto de la prosperidad, sino una de sus causas? Si estuviera en mis manos, esta obra sería de obligada lectura de todos los estudiantes universitarios, pero además, le recomendaría su lectura a todos los políticos, periodistas y policy makers. Con sus escritos Azel logra lo que Frédéric Bastiat consiguiera en Francia y Henry Hazlitt en Estados Unidos: aunar el sentido común, la observación inteligente y la enjundia académica. Estupendo. Carlos Alberto Montaner                                                            Compre Aqui "Liberty for beginners is much more than what the title promises. It is eighty themes touched with the wisdom of a master, and the charm of an excellent communicator. Anyone that wishes to understand why countries do, or do not progress, will find in this book the best explanations. Stupendous" Carlos Alberto Montaner Buy Now "Libertad para novatos es mucho más de lo que promete el título. Son ochenta temas tocados con la sabiduría de un maestro y la amenidad de un excelente comunicador. Cualquier adulto que desee saber por qué progresan o se estancan los pueblos aquí encontrará las mejores explicaciones. Estupendo." Carlos Alberto Montaner Compre Aqui In Reflections on Freedom, José Azel brings together a collection of his columns published in prestigious newspapers.  Each article reveals his heartfelt and personal awareness of the importance of freedom in our lives.  They are his reflections after nearly sixty years of living and learning as a Cuban outside Cuba. In what has become his stylistic trademark, Professor Azel brilliantly introduces complex topics in brief journalistic articles. Buy Now En Reflexiones sobre la libertad José Azel reúne una colección de sus columnas publicadas en prestigiosos periódicos. Cada artículo revela su percepción sincera y personal de la importancia de la libertad en nuestras vidas. Son sus reflexiones después de casi sesenta años viviendo y aprendiendo como cubano fuera de Cuba.  En lo que ha resultado ser característica distintiva de sus artículos, el Profesor Azel introduce con brillantez complejos temas en  breves artículos de carácter periodístico. Compre Aqui Mañana in Cuba is a comprehensive analysis of contemporary Cuba with an incisive perspective of the Cuban frame of mind and its relevancy for Cuba's future. Buy now Pedazos y Vacíos is a collection of poems written in by Dr. Azel in his youth. Poems are in Spanish. Buy now