[MD] Politics

[Christoffer Ivarsson]

Arlo, Ian, Platt

Platt:
>Don't think that's true. I denounce the social pattern of big government
>but support many traditional social patterns like craftsmanship, self-
>reliance and self-responsibility.

I bet you did that long before you heard of the MOQ. We seem to live in 
different worlds. Let me tell you one reason why I don't like the 
"help-yourself" part of the American dream. For almost a thousand years we 
in this northern corner of Europe-  and far longer more to the south - there 
was very weak social patterns, no institutions, no real government: only 
warmongers and fuzzy honour-codes to keep people in something akin to order. 
Self-reliance and self-responsibility was all there was. But new times came, 
development continued.  From the time of the Swedish Empire and until the 
19th century, institutions continued to grow strong,  the governments 
ability to gain control continued as well. However, This development didn't 
go towards a more totalitarian state, but rather the opposite. In 1921 both 
men and women had the right to vote,  and it is now, when that happens that 
the government may become a most efficient tool for the people. self- 
reliance and self-responsibility is still important, and it always will. But 
the people decided that if someone should fail, or if something should go 
wrong, then there should be help to be gotten. The welfare-state.  Moreover, 
this is a quite intellectual reasoning that brings this about - if there is 
generally less poverty and less fear of poverty in society, why then society 
will be a safer place, and everybody can go about their business more 
calmly. Then put this into a MOQ context. I believe that what should be done 
is to further the development of the intellectual level - I'm sure you will 
agree - so, by using s somewhat utilitarian way of reasoning here: if as 
many as possible may educate themselves as much as possible, that will 
further the development of the intellectual level. So, back to my original 
point: If we now have the state, and we can make it work for us, both 
working as a frame for social patterns of value and, furthering the 
development AND being controlled by  - intellectual patterns of value 
(reason) then why on earth should we not do so?

Perhaps repetition. Ah. Well.

Chris