Comments on: Majority Rules http://thomaswhitley.com/2010/02/07/majority-rules/ Fri, 11 May 2012 21:25:40 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Alamanach http://thomaswhitley.com/2010/02/07/majority-rules/#comment-167 Sat, 10 Apr 2010 00:34:31 +0000 http://thomaswhitley.com/?p=103569581#comment-167 A philosopher king doesn’t exist for the same reason that tyranny of the majority is a problem. People are falliable and often (in fact, usually) put their own interests ahead of what is right. Also, people are limited. Even if we did find an individual who could always rise above self-interest, he would never be able to learn all the relevant facts of every matter before him in order to arrive a a correct decision every time; the world is just too complicated. This is why people need to be left to manage their own affairs. No one knows your problems better than you do, and it is up to you to make good and just decisions in your life.

Marriage is wholly appropriate matter for the group as a whole to decide, because marriage is a public contract. It is not a private matter between two people, it is an important public union that the public needs to know about and agree to if all that follows from marriage is to function properly. I give my spouse a great deal of preferential treatment over others, and this is justified and accepted only because she is my spouse. Were we to somehow treat our marriage as something private, we would very quickly have a lot to answer for to all the other people in our lives. So, if the majority of the society flatly refuses to admit of a new type of marriage, I’m afraid that’s the end of the matter.

]]> By: seth http://thomaswhitley.com/2010/02/07/majority-rules/#comment-147 Mon, 08 Feb 2010 03:07:36 +0000 http://thomaswhitley.com/?p=103569581#comment-147 The tyranny of the majority has long been a concern of democratic thinkers and was the driving motivation behind the bill of rights. I agree with your concerns wholeheartedly.

Plato favored the philosopher king to all other forms of rule with good cause. I think I’m in agreement with him, if we can ever find one to follow. Such a king would rise above self interest and rule with integrity, and ensure others would do the same. Sadly, I don’t think such a ruler would be elected in our system.

]]>