Monday, February 27, 2012

What Should Government Do?

One of my personal philosophical guides is Robert Heinlein. As I work through the Great Books, various elements remind me of questions and passages from his works. I thought I'd share them here.
This first one is from 'The Moon is a Harsh Mistress'. The story is about the revolution of a lunar colony that is loosely based on convict colonies like Australia. The scene takes place as the three main characters are feeling out the political leanings of each other.

"Dear lady, I must come to Manuel's defense. He has a correct evaluation even though he may not be able to state it. May I ask this? Under what circumstances is it moral for a group to do that which is not moral for a member of that group to do alone?"
"Uh . . . that's a trick question."
"It is the key question, my dear Wyoming. A radical question that strikes to the root of the whole dilemma of government. Anyone who answers honestly and abides by all consequences knows where he stands - and what he will die for."
'Under what circumstances is it moral for a group to do that which is not moral for a member of that group to do alone?' I've been working on this question for more than twenty years and I still don't feel like I have a good handle on it.

2 comments:

  1. This question is complex. I also have no general answers for it, though I have some opinions on particular examples. Bastiat, a popular economist with Libertarians, says, "Thus, since an individual cannot lawfully use force against the person, liberty, or property of another individual, then the common force — for the same reason — cannot lawfully be used to destroy the person, liberty, or property of individuals or groups." See the context of this argument here: http://bastiat.org/en/the_law.html#SECTION_G004. This way of thinking has always seemed oversimplistic to me, and to make a few too many assumptions about the origins of government and the state of nature. Anyways, that's my first quick ideas to your post. Thanks for posting it. I need to read more Heinlein.

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    1. 'The Moon is a Harsh Mistress' is an excellent place to start with Heinlein. He does great work in imagining other possible cultures, ones that have real strengths and weaknesses. I think he would describe himself as a cynical philosopher, in that he believed in great good but always knew that mankind could (and would!) be bad. As I said, I find him endlessly fascinating.

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