“If men are good, you don’t need government; if men are evil or ambivalent, you don’t dare have one. ” ~ Robert LeFevre
I honestly believe that realization cuts to the very heart of the matter. It demolishes every single justification for The State in one fell swoop.
The reality is that people are good, evil, and ambivalent. Each of us has probably been all three at different times. But, give a person political power and the evil will be strengthened and encouraged. Positively selected for.
If you could guarantee a method of making sure only good people were given political power, and would remain good while having it, so they could "govern" the evil and ambivalent people in society... I still wouldn't need government. But, I'd be content to let you engage in your silly little game- since being good would mean you'd leave me completely alone unless I initiated force or theft.
But since evil people are drawn to the power politics gives them, and the few good people who accidentally gain political power are quickly corrupted by it, your system fails every single time. And evil people with political power are much, much worse than evil people who are forced to do evil without the veil of legitimacy government seems to convey.
I don't dare support government of any kind, for any reason. It's just too dangerous to risk.
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The reality is that people are good, evil, and ambivalent. Each of us has probably been all three at different times. But, give a person political power and the evil will be strengthened and encouraged. Positively selected for.
If you could guarantee a method of making sure only good people were given political power, and would remain good while having it, so they could "govern" the evil and ambivalent people in society... I still wouldn't need government. But, I'd be content to let you engage in your silly little game- since being good would mean you'd leave me completely alone unless I initiated force or theft.
But since evil people are drawn to the power politics gives them, and the few good people who accidentally gain political power are quickly corrupted by it, your system fails every single time. And evil people with political power are much, much worse than evil people who are forced to do evil without the veil of legitimacy government seems to convey.
I don't dare support government of any kind, for any reason. It's just too dangerous to risk.
.
In a perfect world, you would be right. Unfortunately, it seems that the majority of people look to "leaders". What is the most basic form of government (remember, to govern means to control)? That would be self government, self control. But no person lives alone. What is the earliest type of human government. That would be tribal or clan elders, people who have lived longer and experienced more. But, as agriculture was discovered, allowing for cities, accumulation of wealth, kings, armies, and greed for more, we lost the tribal elder experience. And, many thousands of years later, here we are. People will not give up government. They can't. Most people, I believe are afraid to be independent. So those of us who believe that we need no government to ruin our lives (We're from the government and we're here to help.) will just have to put up with it as best we can, and avoid it as best we can. It's just how things are and will be until human nature changes.
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