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talkpoliticsThis month's topic is something that I have devoted a large (some would say unhealthy) amount of thought to.
Unlike others I believe that it is entirely possible to have a system of government that is both totalitarian and democratic. All that is required is oppression in the name of "the majority". The fact that a signifigant portion of southern voters were in favor of segregation did not somehow make the Jim Crow South less oppressive, or its treatment of minorities more moral.
Like meus_ovatio, I view totalitarianism as a continium, not a binary state. Thus the question becomes "how totalitarian are we willing to be?". A totalitarian state seeks to control all aspects of it's citizens lives, and recognizes no authority outside its own. This authority needs to be backed up by law enforcement, otherwise poeople would be free to ignore it.
When someone says “there ought to be a law”, they are really saying, “someone should shoot you, on my behalf, if you do not do as I say”.
Now there are instances (such as rape, murder, and theft) where I feel that such a response is appropriate, but there are numerous others where I do not.
Now some people will object that not all punishments involve death, and they would be correct. Afterall, there are always fines, incarceration, community service etc... But what happens if someone objects to thier prescribed punishment?
What happens when a not-really-criminal resists being taken off to jail for something that's not really a crime?
Violence. If he's lucky he'll just get roughed up a bit (thrown to the pavement and cuffed) if he's unlucky he might get tasered or beaten. If he continues to resist he will be shot. Due process and "your day in court" are entirely dependant on living long enough to collect.
People tell me that I'm being extreme or reactionary when I call no-smoking laws or the individual mandate "fascism light" but I am deadly serious. In my opinion, all government legislation is, on some level, backed up by the barrel of a gun and should be debated with this in mind.
Unlike others I believe that it is entirely possible to have a system of government that is both totalitarian and democratic. All that is required is oppression in the name of "the majority". The fact that a signifigant portion of southern voters were in favor of segregation did not somehow make the Jim Crow South less oppressive, or its treatment of minorities more moral.
Like meus_ovatio, I view totalitarianism as a continium, not a binary state. Thus the question becomes "how totalitarian are we willing to be?". A totalitarian state seeks to control all aspects of it's citizens lives, and recognizes no authority outside its own. This authority needs to be backed up by law enforcement, otherwise poeople would be free to ignore it.
When someone says “there ought to be a law”, they are really saying, “someone should shoot you, on my behalf, if you do not do as I say”.
Now there are instances (such as rape, murder, and theft) where I feel that such a response is appropriate, but there are numerous others where I do not.
Now some people will object that not all punishments involve death, and they would be correct. Afterall, there are always fines, incarceration, community service etc... But what happens if someone objects to thier prescribed punishment?
What happens when a not-really-criminal resists being taken off to jail for something that's not really a crime?
Violence. If he's lucky he'll just get roughed up a bit (thrown to the pavement and cuffed) if he's unlucky he might get tasered or beaten. If he continues to resist he will be shot. Due process and "your day in court" are entirely dependant on living long enough to collect.
People tell me that I'm being extreme or reactionary when I call no-smoking laws or the individual mandate "fascism light" but I am deadly serious. In my opinion, all government legislation is, on some level, backed up by the barrel of a gun and should be debated with this in mind.
(no subject)
Date: 8/4/11 03:59 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 9/4/11 01:07 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 9/4/11 06:47 (UTC)Have a read on market structures (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Market_structure) and tell me how many really fit your model of perfect competition. Where do you think the automotive industry fits? The oil industry? The mass consumption supermarkets? etc.
(no subject)
Date: 9/4/11 19:17 (UTC)