Liberty is an inherently offensive lifestyle. Living in a free society guarantees that each one of us will see our most cherished principles and beliefs questioned and in some cases mocked. That psychic discomfort is the price we pay for basic civic peace. It's worth it. It's a pragmatic principle. Defend everyone else's rights, because if you don't there is no one to defend yours. -- MaxedOutMama

I don't just want gun rights... I want individual liberty, a culture of self-reliance....I want the whole bloody thing. -- Kim du Toit

The most glaring example of the cognitive dissonance on the left is the concept that human beings are inherently good, yet at the same time cannot be trusted with any kind of weapon, unless the magic fairy dust of government authority gets sprinkled upon them.-- Moshe Ben-David

The cult of the left believes that it is engaged in a great apocalyptic battle with corporations and industrialists for the ownership of the unthinking masses. Its acolytes see themselves as the individuals who have been "liberated" to think for themselves. They make choices. You however are just a member of the unthinking masses. You are not really a person, but only respond to the agendas of your corporate overlords. If you eat too much, it's because corporations make you eat. If you kill, it's because corporations encourage you to buy guns. You are not an individual. You are a social problem. -- Sultan Knish

All politics in this country now is just dress rehearsal for civil war. -- Billy Beck

Wednesday, April 08, 2020

Let's Try This Again

First time in awhile where Blogger borked a post.  Let's try this post again, originally titled "Democracy Worship Again."  Retitled, "You know, we're just not reaching that guy."

From a comment thread at Quora:
James Briggs

Those who claim that America is a republic, not a democracy are opposed to democracy. The former Soviet Union was the kind of republic that the Federalists want.
Kevin Baker

And you base this on…?
James Briggs

The words we are not a democracy says it all. Those who deny American is a democracy do not want it to be a democracy.
Kevin Baker

This is known as circular reasoning. While I will grant that the words “we are not a democracy” mean exactly that, it’s quite a logical leap to the position that those who say it want a Soviet dictatorship. Care to elaborate?
James Briggs

Those who oppose democracy want a dictatorship. Those are the only two choices we have at this time.
Kevin Baker

Well, my time of taking you seriously has certainly come to a middle.

Democracy = 1 person/1 vote. 50%+1 of a population can vote for anything - the banishment of all left-handed redheads, for instance. Since left-handed redheads are a distinct minority, they have no recourse. They’ve been outvoted. Then there’s gang-rape. Should the victim acquiesce simply because they’re outvoted?

Here’s something I like to remind people of who extol the wondrous desirability of DEMOCRACY!!:

Democracy is two wolves and a sheep deciding on what to have for dinner.

A representative republic is 50,000 wolves and 40,000 sheep voting 50 wolves and 40 sheep into office to decide what to have for dinner.

A constitutional republic is a similar situation but with a constitution saying that lamb cannot be for dinner, with a Supreme Court of 5 wolves voting against 4 sheep to determine that mutton is not lamb.

Liberty is well-armed sheep protesting the vote.

So as for your assertion that there’s only a binary choice: 1=Democracy, 0=Dictatorship, I disagree wholly.
I thought we were finished, but he replied!
James Briggs

Your spurious examples have been used by those enemies of the truth from time immemorial. it is like the old canard that Hitler was elected. It is in the people's interest to vote what is best for the people. They may be mistaken but it is better to be ruled by a fool who is on your side than by a genus who is your enemy. The fact is democracies always win in the real world. Germany was destroyed by the experts who rejected democracy and put Hitler in power. We have just seen the demise of the Soviet Union a republic that was not a democracy. Then Venezuela had the same results. Now we undemocratic Islamism take the stage and you have learned nothing.
Kevin Baker

Truly, you have a dizzying intellect.
HE REPLIED AGAIN.  (And upvoted my comment!)
James Briggs

Thank you but as you have been so nice I feel that I should add to my point. Those who make decisions fall into two groups those who know the answer and those who don’t. Statistics assumes that mistakes are random and cancel each other out while those who are right are all going vote in the same direction. Groups of people voting have been able to beat chess masters. I wish I could find a journal article on this issue but I was unable on short notice. Best wishes.
 

Yeah, I'm done with that particular wall of knowledge.

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