The passage above comes from an article written by investigative historian, Eric Zuesse, for Business Insider on why libertarianism is a flawed ideology. He makes a great point, one that I make with libertarians over and over; namely, that there really isn’t much difference between someone who uses unethical methods and cheats to get ahead and someone who may be very ethical, super ambitious and motivated (to create beautiful, meaningful things, for example, that may contribute to society in great ways) BUT who simultaneously feels that they’re intrinsically “better” and more deserving to rule (economically and/or politically) because they do great things; they’re both assholes in different ways!
I also resonate with the anthropological point Zuesse is hitting on: yes if we think humans are morally stained and un-trustable, then our “state of nature” is one that is very close to what Hobbes and Augustine think it is. But as I’ve written before, this is a deranged, distorted, and unnecessarily pessimistic view of human nature.
Zuesse also comments on the ridiculous notion of having no government at all, and again I largely agree with him here (although he includes anarchy in his list, liking it to libertarianism, which is completely ridiculous; we all know ((or should know)) that anarchism is not about chaos or “no government” but about relentlessly pursuing the end of destructive, oppressive power hierarchies. Even the most hardcore anarcho-primitivists will admit it’s impossible to NOT have some form of regulatory relational dynamic). I think governments can be viewed positively (although always with a skeptical eye of course) and their purpose should be to provide freedom to be able to pursue and achieve goods: better social conditions, better education, better health, more just distribution of resources, higher overall quality of life, etc., etc., etc.
Evolutionarily speaking, the best way for humans to flourish is to encourage cooperation and trustworthiness, not competition, deceit, and the lauding of “success” (and debasing of “losers”). Natural systems certainly do create greater abundance as they develop, but they do not hoard it; rather they use it to sustain more life, and this is what we need to do as well if we are to adapt and survive as a species.
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Painting above by Bill Allen
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