If this were a
dictatorship, it would be a heck of a lot easier, just so long as I’m the
dictator.
–George Bush
Numerous types of governments fail CAWTBER, including authoritarianism, monarchism, dictatorship,
aristocracy, militarism, plutocracy, autocracy, despotism, totalitarianism, and
theocracy. Other types and practices of
government might fail, as well, depending on the circumstances. The issue is not so much assigning pass-fail
labels to types of governments as it is analyzing what the governments do in
practice. A democracy, for example,
might pass CAWTBER in some areas and fail CAWTBER in other areas, depending
upon governmental actions.
Consider the general idea of an
historical king as a meme for a governmental authority figure that must be
obeyed. As such, this meme bumps elbows with the
citizenry and fails CAWTBER. An
historical king would likely not have been elected, but a modern governmental
official matching the king meme might have been elected. The king meme is pervasive in our society
even though we have a democracy and are led by presidents. In the U.S., We pledge allegiance to the republic, yet our lifestyle is rife
with loyalty to monarchs. Do we as a
nation believe in democracy or authoritarian control? Do we act the same as we think we believe?
A meme is an idea that is passed between people in an evolutionary
way somewhat like genes are passed in DNA.
The word was coined by Richard Dawkins in The Selfish Gene. Here is a
good external explanation of memes: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/What-Defines-a-Meme.html. The king
meme as used here is more than just the definition of a king; it is the idea
passed down through the ages that an authority figure, sometimes respected, is
in control and should be obeyed. Most of
us have some idea of historical European kings, but consider also other
non-king examples of these kinds of authority figures. Consider the god of the Old Testament. Consider Chairman Mao’s Little Red Book. Of course,
Hitler. These do not have the title of king, but all are authority figures,
like a king, that people learned to follow (or were forced to follow). It’s
good to be king! Does Buddha fit this
meme? Not so much, because kill the Buddha is a teaching that what
is important is the teachings of Buddha, and not the Buddha, himself. In modern times, top-down corporate
management fits the king meme: the boss
does not care what you think, just do what he says. These other king meme manifestations, as well
historical kings, bump elbows with
their citizenry (or employees) and fail CAWTBER. King
meme in this discussion henceforth refers to all types of authority figures
that must be obeyed.
The king meme has carried over into
our culture even after a war against a king over 200 years ago. Consider that we have prom queens and
homecoming kings. There is no such thing
as a burger president or president of the hill. We have king
for a day, King Kong, kingpin, and king size. Although we might believe in a democracy, we
seem to think in terms of kings. Some
say that a constitutional monarchy is not really a monarchy—I say that either
England is just pretending to have a queen or they are pretending not to have
one. In the U.S. we are starting to have
successions of governmental leaders such as George and George W. Bush. Geb Bush might be next. Hillary might follow Bill Clinton. Do you think we as a citizenry might feel
comfort in having not just a king,
but a royal family, in charge? Media interest on the personalities of
candidates, as opposed to their positions on issues, further degrades progress
towards the move away from king memes in government.
Not all authority figures fit the king
meme and fail CAWTBER. Sometimes it is
best to turn it over and trust an
authority figure. An example is a car
mechanic who takes apart your car and presumably sees the problem to fix while
you are at work earning the money to pay hir bill. Another example is a surgeon who has you
under the knife while you are asleep.
Sometimes you are in situation where you just have to trust other people
being in control. Should you always
trust all surgeons and always trust all car mechanics? No, it is not a matter of assigning pass-fail
labels on types of people as it is analyzing what people do in practice—the
same person might pass CAWTBER in one endeavor and fail CAWTBER in another
endeavor.
Even with trusted authority
figures, reason can play a part in addition to blind trust of authority. Even the surgeon and the car mechanic is
likely to explain things to you and ask for your opinion on how to proceed when
possible. Shouldn’t a government be the
same way?
The opposite of the king meme is
consensual government—rule by consent of the governed. This can be rather difficult and
controversial to define. Being ruled by
an elected official makes some sense in that by voting you have given someone
consent to govern. Does that pass
CAWTBER? It depends. Does the elected official then steal your
property and throw you in jail without cause?
Here is another scenario. Only
the very richest people can determine who can run for office. Generally undesirable candidates are put on
the ballots and the citizens then vote for the best of the worst candidates.
The winning candidate then appoints a judge that has a term for life. Is that judge then ruling with consent of the
governed? This could be argued both
ways. Does this judge situation pass
CAWTBER? That depends on what the judge
does more than how ze was put in office.
Lysander Spooner questioned whether
the U.S. Constitution met the criteria of being consent of the governed. You did not sign it, or vote on it. You are subject to it because you were born
in the U.S. Does that signify consent to
it? The Southern States definitely
believed otherwise during the U.S. Civil War.
The concept of once-in-a-democracy-always-in-a-democracy appears to have
come from Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Social Contract:
Each of us places his person and
authority under the supreme direction of the general will, and the group receives each
individual as an indivisible part of the whole...
Abraham Lincoln stated this as a house divided against itself cannot stand. A similar situation appears to apply to many
street gangs and organized crime: Once
you join you cannot quit.
What about rule of law? Does that concept pass CAWTBER? Rule of law is often given as a good substitute
for rule by man because laws are presumably more consistent than the arbitrary
whims of individuals. But what about
laws requiring, say, that run-away slaves must be returned? Or laws governing women’s bodies? The answer is that rule of law as a concept
neither passes nor fails CAWTBER, it depends on how the laws are used.
Government secrecy is another issue
concerning consent of the governed. Can
the citizenry really consent to what they do not know about?
The move towards running government
as a corporation, i.e., top-down, is a king meme that moves away from
consensual government and fails CAWTBER.
The situation with democracy is
that it may or may not pass CAWTBER depending upon the circumstances. This includes the populace having enough
information to make informed decisions, consent continuing even after an
election, more direct participation in the selection and election of government
officials, and recognizing and avoiding king memes in government. The test, though, is CAWTBER. It is not a matter of assigning labels to types
of governments, but rather of analyzing particular situations.
Conclusion
Numerous types of authoritarian
governments fail CAWTBER, summarized by the king meme, which persists even in a
democracy. As many people say, democracy
is not a good form of government, but it is the best we have. A government by consent of the governed with
informed participation even after elections supports CAWTBER. A democracy may or may not pass CAWTBER
depending upon actions taken by the democracy.
Citizens can use CAWTBER as a tool for awareness and analysis in
evaluating the actions of a democracy and other types of government.
Democracy mayPass or fail—depends
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