3 ms·

> Yeah, one relies upon the threat of violence, I'm similarly sick of this tedious "threat of violence" trope. Any action decided collectively by the community

> Yeah, one relies upon the threat of violence, I'm similarly sick of this tedious "threat of violence" trope. Any action decided collectively by the community and enforced is a threat of violence, yes? Regulations to stop you torturing puppies? "That's bad - it's a threat of violence" Regulations to stop you littering in national parks? "Threat of violence" Speed limits, requirements that car manufactures meet minimum safety regulations, laws that stop chemical companies dumping in aquifers? - "threats of violence". It's a cheap rhetorical trick and it doesn't make a case sound compelling.

hitpointdrew 7y ago
What happens if you don't pay your taxes? People whit guns come and throw you in jail. It isn't a "cheap rhetorical trick" it is the fucking truth. >Regulations to stop you torturing puppies? "That's bad - it's a threat of violence" I am not saying "never use a threat of violence". I am simply saying that if it isn't appropriate for an individual to use the threat of violence, then it isn't appropriate for the government to do so. Would I personally use violence to stop a robbery, sure, would I personally use violence to fund the arts, no.
- Angostura 7y ago
  > I am simply saying that if it isn't appropriate for an individual to use the threat of violence, then it isn't appropriate for the government to do so. So. Was it, for example, reasonable for governments to regulate production of CFCs to attempt to stop the growth of the ozone holes at the poles? I presume you wouldn't go out and smash the face of a person for selling a fridge. I presume therefore you would be against any kind of environmental regulation. Are you really going to argue that you beating a fisherman for hauling in too much cod is exactly comparable to the government setting fishing quotas to avoid a species pretty much extinct?

hitpointdrew 7y ago

What happens if you don't pay your taxes? People whit guns come and throw you in jail. It isn't a "cheap rhetorical trick" it is the fucking truth. >Regulations to stop you torturing puppies? "That's bad - it's a threat of violence" I am not saying "never use a threat of violence". I am simply saying that if it isn't appropriate for an individual to use the threat of violence, then it isn't appropriate for the government to do so. Would I personally use violence to stop a robbery, sure, would I personally use violence to fund the arts, no.

Angostura 7y ago
> I am simply saying that if it isn't appropriate for an individual to use the threat of violence, then it isn't appropriate for the government to do so. So. Was it, for example, reasonable for governments to regulate production of CFCs to attempt to stop the growth of the ozone holes at the poles? I presume you wouldn't go out and smash the face of a person for selling a fridge. I presume therefore you would be against any kind of environmental regulation. Are you really going to argue that you beating a fisherman for hauling in too much cod is exactly comparable to the government setting fishing quotas to avoid a species pretty much extinct?