Re: Justice and Punishment

mark@unicorn.com
Mon, 6 Apr 1998 07:14:00 -0700 (PDT)


Eugene Leitl [eugene@liposome.genebee.msu.su] wrote:
>The governments and criminal organisations do
>not exist because of a whim.

Governments exist primarily because historically centralization has been
more efficient and required to defeat other invading governments. With
current weaponry and communications technologies this is no longer the
case; in fact government centralization is a weakness when the entire
US government could be wiped out by one fanatic with a van-nuke. Hence
increasing government paranoia, which serves only to increase the
probability that the White House will move to the stratosphere.

Criminal organisations generally exist because of bad laws; remove
victimless crime laws and most of them would have no way to make money
other than direct use of force. Sadly, the generation who learnt their
lesson with prohibition were dying out by the arrival of the 'War on
Some Drugs'.

Mark