Charles Darwin’s ideas provided American reform liberals with a vehicle for attacking the ideology of limited government, but this approach had serious ramifications for society and government. Value judgments were deliberately left at the mercy of group competition, and government was defined as a part of this competition. Democratic government in a society as diverse as that of the United States can not be responsive to a wide range of competing social norms and still be able to act forcefully. Human consciousness became essentially a reflection of society’s attitudes and beliefs. The conclusion to be drawn from a correct understanding of the relationship between science and political ideology and practice is that science and human freedom can each prosper if the sources of political values are derived from something other than attempts to apply science to the political.