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    Made withinDC&Austin
    Statements
    321,452
    Perspectives
    108,905
    Topics
    42
    The more completely authority is vested in one man, the w... — Carmelics
    Home/Consequentialism
    HistoryEditSee Inverse

    The more completely authority is vested in one man, the worse off everyone is, including the despot himself.

    Consequentialism
    ?Rate how convincing each reason is below to see the overall strength.
    1 reason for
    2 reasons against

    Reasons For

    1 perspective
    Reason for
    ?
    • 1.A king is likely to look after his own advantage alone, neglecting the general welfare.
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    • 2.Neglecting the general welfare ultimately results in the weakening of the civitas.
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    • 3.A weakened civitas harms all members, including the ruler.
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    Reasons Against

    2 perspectives
    Reason against 1 of 2
    ?
    • 1.A unified sovereign will can coordinate action and resolve collective action problems that deliberative bodies systematically fail to solve (Hobbes, Leviathan).
      ?

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    • 2.The security and predictability provided by absolute authority may produce greater aggregate welfare than the factional instability endemic to distributed power.
      ?

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    • 3.Hobbes demonstrates that the sovereign's self-interest structurally aligns with subjects' survival, since a dead or impoverished population cannot sustain sovereign power.
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    Reason against 2 of 2
    ?
    • 1.Plato's Republic argues that a philosopher-king, unconstrained by popular opinion, can govern according to genuine knowledge of the Good rather than majority ignorance.
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    • 2.If epistocratic rule by a wise single authority produces better outcomes than rule by the uninformed many, then vesting authority in one man is not necessarily worse for all.
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    Topics

    ConsequentialismDemocracy & Governance

    Connections

    2 topics

    Social Contract1 linkedJustice & Punishment1 linked

    Related

    A king is likely to look after his own advantage alone, neglecting the general w...A unified sovereign will can coordinate action and resolve collective action pro...A weakened civitas harms all members, including the ruler.Hobbes demonstrates that the sovereign's self-interest structurally aligns with ...
    +4 moreShow less
    If epistocratic rule by a wise single authority produces better outcomes than ru...Neglecting the general welfare ultimately results in the weakening of the civita...Plato's Republic argues that a philosopher-king, unconstrained by popular opinio...

    Similar

    In despotic states a single person directs everything by his own will ...80%The ruler in a despotic state has no more personal security than his s...77%A single ruler vesting all authority in himself tends toward neglect o...77%The relationship of individuals to authority is largely ineffable74%

    Source

    AI-extracted1/3 agreementValid
    SEP: spinoza-political
    View source passageHide passage
    Given that the fundamental aim of the state is peace, the question that Spinoza seeks to address in chapters 6 and 7 of the Political Treatise is how a monarchy is to be organized so as to be maximally peaceful. He begins by repeating the claim that men are largely irrational and selfish. And since the passions of common men must be regulated, it is tempting to suppose, as Hobbes does, that heavy-handed governance is required. But Spinoza claims that even if a despot is able to minimize violence
    Extraction notes

    Validity: Extracted via Max plan + API grounding/validity checks

    Details

    The security and predictability provided by absolute authority may produce great...
    Type
    claim
    Perspectives
    3 (1 for, 2 against)
    Edits
    1 edit