Global Sense: Parable on the rise and fall of governments (part 2 of 3)

October 5, 4:35 PMPolitical Issues ExaminerJudah Freed

Previous Next

Comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Political Issues Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Global Sense by Judah Freed
(www.MakeGlobalSense.com)

To explain the nature of government, Paine offered a parable about a small group of people that colonize some isolated place. You might picture them in a remote valley or perhaps another planet.
Human beings are social animals innately unfit for eternal solitude.

Since thousands of urges excite each person, and since people cannot satisfy all their desires by themselves, the colonists feel bound to seek help and relief from one another. Self sufficiency is valued, yet talents are most easily noticed from service to the community, such as from helping a neighbor to clear a field for planting or care for a sick child. Working together and facing adversity together forges common bonds as deep feelings of unity arise among the settlers.

Driven by social necessity, the immigrants form a loose community. Rights and duties are spread fairly among all of the settlers as relative equals. Whatever culture emerges in that remote place, the blessings of shared interests make the limits of law and government unnecessary. The people don’t need a government, for they practice self rule. Their utopian anarchy lasts only as long as they behave themselves.

Impermanence might be the one permanent truth in our universe. The settlers’ initial struggles united them in a common cause, yet in that first generation or another, human frailties and vices surface, like robbery, rape or murder. Seeing others sin, the resolve for self control dissolves. As distrust spreads, the settlers decide they need to establish some form of government to rule their society — because they cannot or will not rule themselves responsibly without a government.

Paine imagined the people gathering under some great tree to form their first council. Under its spreading branches the whole community assembles to deliberate on public matters. Everyone in the community has a natural right to a seat in this first parliament. Each person’s vote carries as much weight as another person’s vote. All citizens are equal. In this way, the people form a “direct” or genuine democracy.

Most likely, the first laws will carry the muted titles of Guidelines. Regulations will follow. The early laws may be enforced by a penalty no more severe than social disdain — the old cold shoulder.

As the population grows, community concerns increase, yet some members now live too far away to attend every meeting at the Council Tree. Personal inconvenience creates a communication barrier — the first block to all of the people participating in their democracy.

When meetings grow too unwieldy, people discover the “necessity” of agreeing to leave the job of lawmaking to a few wise heads chosen by the entire community. Power shifts from the people to their leaders.

The assembly of delegates holds the same concerns and interests as all those electing them. These representatives vote the same way as the whole body would vote if everybody were present. Under this social contract, the people form a representative democracy. To use the correct political science term, they form a simple republic.

With the population growing, new districts need to be represented. The legislature adds seats. Each district elects its representatives, who vote as the majority in the district would vote if they all were present. In this way, any republic may prosper honorably in the land.

To stop the representatives from forming interest groups apart from the common electorate, Paine wrote that prudence shows the value of having elections often. Those elected should return and mix with the general body of electors every few months, he felt.
Lively open speech between voters and their representatives helps the representatives stay connected to the community they represent. Voters and representatives support one another. On this connection (not allegiance to a king or supreme ruler) depends the true strength of government and the happiness of the governed.

Part 1 of 3
Part 2 of 3
Part 3 of 3

NOTE: The above is an excerpt from Chapter 2 of Global Sense. Every weekend until further notice, I will post excerpts from the book to stimulate your mind and evoke your comments. These excerpts will be marked, "Global Sense" in the posting title, just like this posting. Subscribing to this column is your best way to catch all the installments. Your feedback will be welcome. You could help improve the next edition.

© 2008 by Judah Freed