>The system is made out of people. Yes, and a people system has serious vulnerabilities. Consider marketing, or the impact of a handful of vaccine misinformati

>The system is made out of people. Yes, and a people system has serious vulnerabilities. Consider marketing, or the impact of a handful of vaccine misinformation bloggers had on a huge segment of the population. or: >“. . .it’s the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it’s always a simple matter to drag the people along whether it’s a democracy, a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism, and exposing the country to greater danger.” Those admirable qualities you mention have been not been forgotten by accident. We've been made to forget, because people without them are easier to manipulate. It's extremely hard to prevent this, because those who perpetrate it have much to gain directly, while those who prevent it do not. Consider any environmental protection law that is costly to a business - if you benefit financially you can put resources/lobbyists/marketing against it, than the volunteers who seek to protect it can. For strictly economic reasons, in the long run, the people lose. You can't really rely on "people". The vulnerabilities need to be patched.