When you look at the United States of today, you will be confronted with a most peculiar question.
How is it possible, that millions of rational beings believe that an election is stolen, which is objectively false
and why do they want to subjugate themselves to a person, who is objectively anti-democratic and an admirer of autocratic leaders?
This situation is not unique in history. Let's ask another question. Why do people, when asked, not want to participate in how and by whom they are governed?
Or put in another way: Why do people believe that there are specific individuals in society who know best what is good for them?
These are questions you could raise in 1790 or about that time. In the previous lecture, we learned about the difference between civil and political freedom.
Political freedom was the involvement of the people in the design and content of government. Civil freedom was the possibility for the citizen
to lead his life undisturbed and to know himself and his property protected, regardless of who or what is in power.
In Germany it was absolutist royalty, in the Netherlands it was the oligarchy of regents, in England a constitutional monarchy. Contra revolutionaries preferred this over democratic freedom.
A deluge of pamphlets, tracts and news articles appeared in Europe and North America with such titles as
"Some Observations on Liberty," "The Defense of Civil Liberty," or "On Liberty and the Citizen." These works analyzed and criticized the revolutionary-democratic concept of freedom.
Like Eberhard, the authors of these pamphlets defended the idea that liberty, or at least civil liberty,
had more to do with how much people could live their lives in peace and tranquility than with how much control they exercised. about the way they were run.
These authors also reiterated Eberhard's strong claim that political liberty was not only different from civil liberty but also a potential threat to it.
Opponents of the Atlantean revolutions were motivated by all sorts of things.
Some conservatives protested the revolutionary attempts to re-develop state institutions based on human reason and not on tradition.
Others were troubled by efforts to separate church and state, which they feared would set society on a path to impiety and wickedness.
But above all, the counter-revolutionaries objected to the democratic character of the revolution.
Perhaps the most important objection was that the majority imposes its will on the minority.
But why is civil liberty preferable to democratic liberty, when the former implies the possibility of being banned
from using the words "invasion" and "war" under a penalty of 15 years in prison, when in fact that is the actual situation?
Thank you for your attention again.....
MacMillan The Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2nd edition
TABLE OF CONTENT -----------------------------------------------------------------
1 - 100 Philosophers 9 May 2009 Start of
2 - 25+ Women Philosophers 10 May 2009 this blog
3 - 25 Adventures in Thinking 10 May 2009
4 - Modern Theories of Ethics 29 Oct 2009
5 - The Ideal State 24 Febr 2010 / 234
6 - The Mystery of the Brain 3 Sept 2010 / 266
7 - The Utopia of the Free Market 16 Febr 2012 / 383
8. - The Aftermath of Neo-liberalism 5 Sept 2012 / 413
9. - The Art Not to Be an Egoist 6 Nov 2012 / 426
10 - Non-Western Philosophy 29 May 2013 / 477
11 - Why Science is Right 2 Sept 2014 / 534
12 - A Philosopher looks at Atheism 1 Jan 2015 / 557
13 - EVIL, a philosophical investigation 17 Apr 2015 / 580
14 - Existentialism and Free Will 2 Sept 2015 / 586
15 - Spinoza 2 Sept 2016 / 615
16 - The Meaning of Life 13 Febr 2017 / 637
17 - In Search of my Self 6 Sept 2017 / 670
18 - The 20th Century Revisited 3 Apr 2018 / 706
19 - The Pessimist 11 Jan 2020 / 819
20 - The Optimist 9 Febr 2020 / 824
21 - Awakening from a Neoliberal Dream 8 Oct 2020 / 872
22 - A World Full of Patterns 1 Apr 2021 / 912
23 - The Concept of Freedom 8 Jan 2022 / 965
The Discussion
[13:16] Thank you for your attention again.....
[13:16] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): Thank you Herman
[13:16] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): ㋡
[13:17] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): those people know there is a war, but the fear of 15 years in prison shut's their mouths
[13:17] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): yes
[13:17] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): or worse, being murdered
[13:17] herman Bergson: that isa when you are governed by a dictator
[13:18] herman Bergson: I still don't understand why people want this....the strong leader...
[13:18] herman Bergson: and give up their own political rights
[13:18] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): indeed it is illogical
[13:19] herman Bergson: yes...but nevertheless
[13:19] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): maybe they all want a father figure
[13:19] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): to guide them en protect them
[13:19] herman Bergson: Why not a mother figure Beertje? :-)
[13:19] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): and later terrorize them
[13:19] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): sssss
[13:19] herman Bergson: exactly Bejiita :-)
[13:19] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): i prefer a mother figure
[13:20] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): woman are stronger:)
[13:21] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): and less evil i guess, more for the good so outcome might be better
[13:21] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): or idk
[13:22] herman Bergson: I wondered about another fact....
[13:22] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): a theory since all these tyrants are men
[13:22] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): ok
[13:23] herman Bergson: polls show that the base of Trump is low educated, which in fact means less informed....
[13:23] herman Bergson: but the contra revolutionaries in 1790 were the well educated people
[13:24] herman Bergson: Yet both groups seem to prefer an authoritarian regime
[13:24] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): maybe they didn't want to loose their power and influence
[13:24] herman Bergson: that was my idea too Beertje....
[13:24] herman Bergson: the well educated were the privileged elite of course
[13:24] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): yes
[13:24] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): hmm
[13:25] herman Bergson: But in the Trump case ....
[13:25] herman Bergson: They are the socially frustrated people
[13:25] herman Bergson: the losers in the SU system, it seems
[13:25] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): but he is a looser himself as well
[13:25] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): yes
[13:26] herman Bergson: Maybe that is what both groups have in common....
[13:26] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): yes
[13:26] herman Bergson: always ask...what are the interests here....
[13:26] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): maybe
[13:26] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): soort zoekt soort
[13:26] herman Bergson: on the one hand....the group wants to keep its privileged position....
[13:27] herman Bergson: on the othert hand....the group wants to become the privileged group
[13:27] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): it's not a question of education here
[13:28] herman Bergson: Maybe that is an explanation
[13:28] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): but were do they want to belong to?
[13:28] herman Bergson: Trump made them believe that they would become the ruling MAGA people
[13:29] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): and they listened without thinking
[13:29] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): depends on the village people too, the people in the wallmart for instance
[13:29] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): friends, neighbours
[13:30] Wisdomseeker (lissena) is online.
[13:30] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): if you don't be with us..you are against us
[13:30] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): hmm
[13:30] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): binary
[13:31] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): no one wants to be outside
[13:31] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): no thats true
[13:31] herman Bergson: Well...so much for the contra revolution :-)
[13:31] herman Bergson: As you see it can go both ways....
[13:32] herman Bergson: the elite wants to keep its position
[13:32] herman Bergson: or the lower class hopes to elevate its position...
[13:32] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): that is hard to do
[13:33] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): it will not mix
[13:33] herman Bergson: That is what a beginning dictator can do....
[13:33] herman Bergson: you join with the elite and grab the power
[13:33] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): hmm
[13:33] herman Bergson: or you join with the lower class and use it to grab the power
[13:34] herman Bergson: two types of dictators...:-)
[13:34] herman Bergson: Trump is fo the second category
[13:34] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): what do you think Lukkie?
[13:34] Lukkie Sands: I think the same as Herman does :-))
[13:35] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): ah
[13:35] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): yes
[13:35] Lukkie Sands: I only can agree with him :-))
[13:35] Lukkie Sands: In fact...he controls my mind ^_^
[13:36] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): grins
[13:36] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): hehe
[13:36] herman Bergson: Well...that's it for today, I'd say :-))
[13:37] herman Bergson: Thank you for your support Lukkie ^_^
[13:37] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): I hope there will be more studends tuesday
[13:37] Lukkie Sands: De nada
[13:37] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): and I finally got the egg cup loose from the machine! With no damage to either
[13:37] .: Beertje :. (beertje.beaumont): je was brlliant
[13:37] Particle Physicist Bejiita (bejiita.imako): time start ester decorations
[13:37] herman Bergson: the time for egg heads :-)
[13:37] herman Bergson: Class dismissed...
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