10 ideas
7903 | The six perfections are giving, morality, patience, vigour, meditation, and wisdom [Nagarjuna] |
Full Idea: The six perfections are of giving, morality, patience, vigour, meditation, and wisdom. | |
From: Nagarjuna (Mahaprajnaparamitashastra [c.120], 88) | |
A reaction: What is 'morality', if giving is not part of it? I like patience and vigour being two of the virtues, which immediately implies an Aristotelian mean (which is always what is 'appropriate'). |
23857 | People in power always try to increase their power [Weil] |
Full Idea: Every human group that exercises power does so …in such a way as to increase that power. | |
From: Simone Weil (Prospects: Proletarian Revolution? [1933], p.15) | |
A reaction: Not so true in smaller institutions, but at the centre of power you can control how power is distributed, so the temptation is too much. |
23856 | Spontaneous movements are powerless against organised repression [Weil] |
Full Idea: A spontaneous movement is fundamentally impotent when it comes to fighting against organised forces of repression. | |
From: Simone Weil (Prospects: Proletarian Revolution? [1933], p.2) | |
A reaction: Her example is the Paris Commune of 1870. Hence revolution requires prior penetration of the corridors of power. Hence the phenomenon of 'entryism' of more radical people into reformist parties. |
20508 | How people vote should be on public record, so they can be held accountable [Mill, by Wolff,J] |
Full Idea: Mill believed in an open vote. People should be held accountable for how they vote, and therefore it should be a matter of public record. | |
From: report of John Stuart Mill (Representative Government [1861]) by Jonathan Wolff - An Introduction to Political Philosophy (Rev) 3 'Representative' | |
A reaction: Nowadays it is a mantra that voting should be secret, because coercion is an obvious problem, but MPs vote publicly, and are held accountable for their voting records. People like the mafia seem to make open public voting impossible. |
20507 | Voting is a strict duty, like jury service, and must only be aimed at the public good [Mill] |
Full Idea: The citizen's vote is not a thing in which he has an option; it has no more to do with his personal wishes than the verdict of a juryman. ...he is bound to give it according to his best and most conscientious opinion of the public good. | |
From: John Stuart Mill (Representative Government [1861], p.299), quoted by Jonathan Wolff - An Introduction to Political Philosophy (Rev) 3 'Representative' | |
A reaction: Mill was also concerned that voters might pursue 'class interest' (which they currently do, big time). |
20505 | Direct democracy is inexperience judging experience, and ignorance judging knowledge [Mill] |
Full Idea: At its best [direct democracy] is inexperience sitting in judgement on experience, ignorance on knowledge. | |
From: John Stuart Mill (Representative Government [1861], p.232), quoted by Jonathan Wolff - An Introduction to Political Philosophy (Rev) 4 'Representative' | |
A reaction: Recent experiments have suggested that inexperienced people can become very good at making large decisions, if they are allowed to consult experts when they want to. See Van Reybrouck's 'Against Elections'. |
20504 | People can only participate in decisions in small communities, so representatives are needed [Mill] |
Full Idea: Since all cannot, in a community exceeding a single small town, participate personally in any but some very minor portions of the public business, it follows that the ideal type of a perfect government must be representative. | |
From: John Stuart Mill (Representative Government [1861], p.217-8), quoted by Jonathan Wolff - An Introduction to Political Philosophy (Rev) 4 'Representative' | |
A reaction: Wolff offers Mill as the principal spokesman for representative democracy. It is not only the difficulty of achieving participation, but also the slowness of decision-making. Modern technology may be changing all of this. |
23859 | True democracy is the subordination of society to the individual [Weil] |
Full Idea: In the subordination of society to the individual lies the definition of true democracy, and that of socialism as well. | |
From: Simone Weil (Prospects: Proletarian Revolution? [1933], p.19) | |
A reaction: This is the simplest definition of the liberal view. The big difference is whether this subordination is the starting point of political thinking, or the end result at which it aims. |
23858 | War is perpetuated by its continual preparations [Weil] |
Full Idea: War perpetuates itself under the form of preparation for war. | |
From: Simone Weil (Prospects: Proletarian Revolution? [1933], p.16) | |
A reaction: There are periods when military preparations are scaled down, but a reason is always found to scale them back up again. |
23860 | Even if a drowning man is doomed, he should keep swimming to the last [Weil] |
Full Idea: A man who is thrown overboard in the middle of the ocean ought not to let himself drown, even though there is very litte chance of his reaching safety, but to go on swimming till exhausted. | |
From: Simone Weil (Prospects: Proletarian Revolution? [1933], p.21) | |
A reaction: You might survive a little longer if you don't exhaust yourself! Not clear where her authority for 'ought' comes from, but it expresses an interesting attitude. |