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Thus has it ever been. The history of government is the history of privilege and it's protection. That the Enlightenment of the 18th Century brought forth moder
by olefoo 13y ago
Thus has it ever been. The history of government is the history of privilege and it's protection. That the Enlightenment of the 18th Century brought forth modern notions of representative democracy was in large part a reaction to the failure and catastrophic overthrow of the feudal order that had existed prior to that time. The American and the French revolutions made it clear that some form of safety valve that allowed class conflict to be mediated and ameliorated was better than the alternatives as far as the interests of the upper classes.
- dangero 13y agoCan you recommend any good books on this topic? You just blew my mind.
- vezzy-fnord 13y agoYour mind was blown from the idea that a government does not necessarily exist to serve the interest of its people, or the little historical blurb? In any case, the heavily ingrained belief of government benevolence in contemporary Western societies, is horrific. But not surprising, with minds like Edward L. Bernays at work (his 1928 book Propaganda should be mandatory reading for everyone).
- chm 13y agoI read Propaganda last year. It is much less interesting and "magical" than some hype it to be.
- erikschoster 13y agoI don't mean to speak for the person you're addressing, but I suspect this was the part that was surprising: "some form of safety valve that allowed class conflict to be mediated and ameliorated was better than the alternatives as far as the interests of the upper classes". That's not an obvious truth, and doesn't deserve self-important snark. I've also read 'Propaganda', and would also recommend it despite its age.
- vidarh 13y agoIt's been obvious since before Bismarck introduced the welfare state in the 1840's onwards. His opposition tried to tarnish his image by claiming he was introducing "state socialism", after which he himself started using the same term about his welfare programs, and explicitly made the point that it was intended to counter the influence of the socialists and calm the masses. Bismarck, which was an ultra-conservative monarchist, actually went further than the majority of the socialist opposition at the time in anticipation of further demands, in order to quell their support.
- olefoo 13y agoWell, if you want the strongest, rawest and purest version of the RealPolitik WeltSchmerz; you should start with the basic texts. Hobbes, Machiavelli, Clausewitz and Rousseau. If you are really a glutton for punishment go on to Hegel, Marx and Nietzsche. If you are wanting a slightly more americanized version; Howard Zinn's "A People's history of the United States" is a good and fairly accessible book. A couple of Wiki pages that might point you toward other resources http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realpolitik http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realpolitik and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_von_Bismarck http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_von_Bismarck Just remember that actual history is messy and not necessarily rational and that any interpretation ( including mine ) of historical events is more wrong the more sweeping and all-encompassing it is.
- coldtea 13y agoHere's another classic: http://www.amazon.com/Democracy-America-Penguin-Classics-Tocqueville/dp/0140447601 http://www.amazon.com/Democracy-America-Penguin-Classics-Toc...
- siliconviking 13y agoThe first 8 (or so) episodes of the podcast "The history of Rome" will shed some light on this exact question...
- tosyx 13y agoOn the subject of capitalism, politics, power and liberty I recommend watching the documentary series "The Trap" by Adam Curtis: [1/3] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZt2HhFXB3M http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZt2HhFXB3M [2/3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbRApO3k_Jo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbRApO3k_Jo [3/3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFjCJFsbS0U https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFjCJFsbS0U Another series by Curtis, "The Century of the Self", explores similar themes in the context of psychology (Freud and Reich), propaganda (Bernays), and the rise of market-based democracy: [*/4] http://vimeo.com/61857758 http://vimeo.com/61857758