tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1750239339662593269.post7606581119480980766..comments2023-11-02T05:19:59.640-05:00Comments on Delusions of Truth: Necessary Evil isn't always necessary or evilKlepsacovichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07915576683657376929noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1750239339662593269.post-67762616464028696142013-10-14T11:53:07.531-05:002013-10-14T11:53:07.531-05:00@Azuriel:
I will concede that the violence, or thr...@Azuriel:<br />I will concede that the violence, or threat thereof, from government is sometimes needed to protect us from other entities, such as the Soviet Union or China. And yes, we do have some types of people in America who use politics as an extension of war, but we're not allowed to shoot them, even if their plots are more damaging than any foreign actions.<br /><br />A general notion of peacefulness is a source of long-term safety, even if in the short term we might be better off with a few less people. In day to day life, social rules are what keep us safe. It isn't our military that keeps Canada at bay, but rather their politeness and eagerness to sell us their resources. When those social rules break down, neither government nor a gun in my own holster are going to fix things up very quickly, as we see when trying to do peacekeeping.Klepsacovichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07915576683657376929noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1750239339662593269.post-10809649030945630012013-10-13T18:09:25.367-05:002013-10-13T18:09:25.367-05:00Well said, Klep. The term "necessary evil&quo...Well said, Klep. The term "necessary evil" is used to demonize ideas we don't like. And those ideas aren't usually anything but necessary.<br /><br />@Azuriel: I don't think that's grounded in reality. It seems to me grounded in fear. It's the line of thinking spawned by a belief that "we" (the superior group) knows better than "them" (the inferior group) and history is replete with miserable examples of this in action. If we're so willing to put up with that misery in the name of fear, I don't see why we can't face the fear in the name of progress. Instead of demonizing we have to be able to confront issues with a determination to resolve them.<br /><br />I always try to remember that government is necessary because it is the plan for getting along. Unfortunately, it has largely been used as a way to avoid solving issues by imposing on people instead. But that's a whole other complex conversation that I don't have the energy for at this moment :)<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1750239339662593269.post-12670353437482749412013-10-11T21:13:24.713-05:002013-10-11T21:13:24.713-05:00Or is government to deal with those other dangerou...<i>Or is government to deal with those other dangerous people, in which case, you have a really sad view of human nature.</i><br /><br />Sad? Maybe. Grounded in reality? Yes. Whether you look at it from a philosophical angle via Hobbes (Leviathan) or from examples in the real world (Somalia, a lot of Africa, etc), it seems pretty clear that government has this express purpose in mind. <br /><br />Hell, you have <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/11/politics/gop-values-summit/index.html?hpt=hp_t2" rel="nofollow">these sort of people</a> even in the US. They might not be taking up their machetes just yet, but that level of delusion + misanthropy is on the same scale. After the bombs drop, they'll be the first ones building the Thunderdome, is what I'm saying.Azurielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16581263347888757710noreply@blogger.com