mikeymikec
Lifer
- May 19, 2011
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Apologies for the inadvertent de-railing of this thread btw, it wasn't intended.
According to that definition, by modern standards then you would need an armed uprising about every 30 years, because abuse of power is commonplace (as well as a matter of perspective in many cases), it's practically the purpose of a modern politician seemingly (or ancient one, if you've read up a bit on Roman politics). Even if you did have an armed uprising now and then, you're then encouraging a culture of violence to achieve political ends when all that encourages is the guy with the largest arsenal being king of the hill. In the context of the modern world and gun ownership in a developed country though, a wannabe tyrant would have to be the most incompetent buffoon not to hold off a bunch of upset amateurs with the resources available to the average developed country's government. Even if said amateurs got together and planned out their strategy really well, they would still be a complete push-over.
I don't think the UK public has learnt that lesson completely though. If they had, several people in the government would have gone to prison for their part in the Dr David Kelly incident alone, let alone the rest of the complete farce that followed.
Pride? In what exactly? Or ignorance of what exactly? Which developed country in the West is having a civil war?
Why do people always believe tyrannical governments are a thing of the past. We may not see a tyrant of the Greek definition, who rules with no constitution or law, but tyrants as defined by John Locke still exists: "Tyranny is the exercise of power beyond right, which nobody can have a right to; and this is making use of the power any one has in his hands, not for the good of those who are under it, but for his own private, separate advantage.”
According to that definition, by modern standards then you would need an armed uprising about every 30 years, because abuse of power is commonplace (as well as a matter of perspective in many cases), it's practically the purpose of a modern politician seemingly (or ancient one, if you've read up a bit on Roman politics). Even if you did have an armed uprising now and then, you're then encouraging a culture of violence to achieve political ends when all that encourages is the guy with the largest arsenal being king of the hill. In the context of the modern world and gun ownership in a developed country though, a wannabe tyrant would have to be the most incompetent buffoon not to hold off a bunch of upset amateurs with the resources available to the average developed country's government. Even if said amateurs got together and planned out their strategy really well, they would still be a complete push-over.
Not really tyrannical. Lapdog-ish, corrupt (in terms of lack of accountability), and stupid, but for a government to qualify as tyrannical in my opinion, they would need to lock up or 'disappear' anyone with an opinion that is contrary to theirs.Remember the UK went along with a war in Iraq in which the context for war was completely fabricated, and the intelligence for that war was achieved via torture. Doesn't this sound tyrannical to you? Unfortunately we did nothing about it, but at least the UK has gotten wiser and won't be fooled again.
I don't think the UK public has learnt that lesson completely though. If they had, several people in the government would have gone to prison for their part in the Dr David Kelly incident alone, let alone the rest of the complete farce that followed.
Because they are heinously ignorant. The world remains full of tyrannical governments. I could swear there is even a civil war in one right now that keeps getting news. Statements like mikey's are the result of either excessive pride--the notion that people are inherently superior to how they used to be--or ignorance of even contemporary history.
Pride? In what exactly? Or ignorance of what exactly? Which developed country in the West is having a civil war?
So to bring this into the context of this discussion, you honestly think there is a vague possibility that the US is going to become like Nazi Germany? If so, do you have any basis for that opinion?What was nazi Germany if not a tyranny? Are we really to pretend the western world is immune from such so soon?
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