If, as Hayek said that the Rule of Law consists in “rules which make it possible to foresee with fair certainty how the authority will use its coercive powers,” then it cannot possibly exist now in the USA.
The U.S. Code is 60,000 pages, the United States Statutes at Large is over 132 volumes, and the Federal Register is over 70,000 pages, with the Tax Code adding another 70,000 pages.
This legal confetti is to any modern Beria like a mudhole to a pig. See Harvey Silverglate and Alan M. Dershowitz: Three Felonies A Day: How the Feds Target the Innocent.
but still pondering a "pragmatic/utilitarian" case for voting-Trump? yeah, yeah I know "voting lesser-evil is still voting for evil." uncomfortable, yet consider:
1) if Biden is a 1 & Trump a 3 [both generous 1-10 evil/good scale!!]...is not 3x less-evil, preferable?
2) all votes for a human is partly a vote for evil...evil running thru all our hearts [Solzhenitsyn quote]
3) one will likely win [ok...maybe GNewsom]...is not 3x Lesser evil...better than 3x More evil?
just saying. maybe we slow & delay our rushing speed off the cliff from 90...to 50 a few yrs.
but who knows what a few yrs more time might offer us???
I'm curious about the author's opinion about this. I'm actually wondering if the optimal utilitarian result would be that Biden bows out due to health and Trump is rendered impotent (overlooking the injustice of this for a moment), opening the door to the victory of an energetic Burkean proxy such as Vivek R or Byron D. (Today I heard top VP contenders are Vance and Rubio, who are less exciting to me.) One should never underestimate the deep resentments Ds can cultivate, but none could equal that held for Trump. Part of me thinks that punishing the Ds with Trump is best, so as not to indulge their ends-justify-means. Another part of me thinks that if someone more effective than Trump came in, inspiring less contempt, that person could coolly and calmly dismantle that dark edifice of power. I fear that, either way, the likeliest result is retribution, which will unleash an authoritarian arms race.
I fear we may be in "An Appointment in Samarra" type situation, but smarter people than me still have hope we can muddle through.
If Biden bows out, then at least Harris will never be president. And yes, a president that can make a dent in the "dark edifice of power" is a hopeful scenario.
But, like you, I agree authoritarians of all sorts will be on the ascendency. We can't expect anything else from a population that lacks principles and knowledge.
We are long past the "rule of law". The Administrative/Security State has been employing "rule making" for decades. The Scamdemic was the final crossing of the Rubicon that cemented the emergency/lawfare State.
If, as Hayek said that the Rule of Law consists in “rules which make it possible to foresee with fair certainty how the authority will use its coercive powers,” then it cannot possibly exist now in the USA.
The U.S. Code is 60,000 pages, the United States Statutes at Large is over 132 volumes, and the Federal Register is over 70,000 pages, with the Tax Code adding another 70,000 pages.
This legal confetti is to any modern Beria like a mudhole to a pig. See Harvey Silverglate and Alan M. Dershowitz: Three Felonies A Day: How the Feds Target the Innocent.
Defending our shared principles is perhaps the only political battlefield that truly matters.
good stuff here...& often well-reviewed.
but still pondering a "pragmatic/utilitarian" case for voting-Trump? yeah, yeah I know "voting lesser-evil is still voting for evil." uncomfortable, yet consider:
1) if Biden is a 1 & Trump a 3 [both generous 1-10 evil/good scale!!]...is not 3x less-evil, preferable?
2) all votes for a human is partly a vote for evil...evil running thru all our hearts [Solzhenitsyn quote]
3) one will likely win [ok...maybe GNewsom]...is not 3x Lesser evil...better than 3x More evil?
just saying. maybe we slow & delay our rushing speed off the cliff from 90...to 50 a few yrs.
but who knows what a few yrs more time might offer us???
I'm curious about the author's opinion about this. I'm actually wondering if the optimal utilitarian result would be that Biden bows out due to health and Trump is rendered impotent (overlooking the injustice of this for a moment), opening the door to the victory of an energetic Burkean proxy such as Vivek R or Byron D. (Today I heard top VP contenders are Vance and Rubio, who are less exciting to me.) One should never underestimate the deep resentments Ds can cultivate, but none could equal that held for Trump. Part of me thinks that punishing the Ds with Trump is best, so as not to indulge their ends-justify-means. Another part of me thinks that if someone more effective than Trump came in, inspiring less contempt, that person could coolly and calmly dismantle that dark edifice of power. I fear that, either way, the likeliest result is retribution, which will unleash an authoritarian arms race.
Interesting speculations, Max.
I fear we may be in "An Appointment in Samarra" type situation, but smarter people than me still have hope we can muddle through.
If Biden bows out, then at least Harris will never be president. And yes, a president that can make a dent in the "dark edifice of power" is a hopeful scenario.
But, like you, I agree authoritarians of all sorts will be on the ascendency. We can't expect anything else from a population that lacks principles and knowledge.
I'm still hoping for a strong run from RFK Jr.
We are long past the "rule of law". The Administrative/Security State has been employing "rule making" for decades. The Scamdemic was the final crossing of the Rubicon that cemented the emergency/lawfare State.
It's hard to view potential collapse of the empire as a vector of liberation. But here we are.
"It's hard to view potential collapse of the empire as a vector of liberation."
—
It gets less hard for me with each passing day.