In our society “democracy” is a universally positive concept. Many people use it synonymously with freedom. Tyranny and democracy do not go together. It is remarkable that this positive image can continue to prevail, despite the fact that most people are ready to admit that there is a lot that is going wrong in politics.…
Our thoughts are with the husband and family of MP Jo Cox who died in tragic circumstances today at the hands of a mentally ill man. There is little information known about these complex and important events, however, the possibility that this may be related to her work as an MP, in service of our…
What a mountain there is to climb. What an impossible task we have set ourselves. Earlier this week Simon wrote a piece wherein he made the very reasonable point, that an employer is not responsible (except in rare, and peculiar, circumstances) for his employee’s having a child. This was in response to an article by…
Hey, have you heard of the internet? Our prime minister and his secretary, Theresa, sure have, and they’re keen to crack down on and get tough with the non-violent extremists on there who are opposed to democracy. Whether or not this is good policy, one thing is certain: in an ideal world this would mean…
Christian Michel joined us at the Rose and Crown on August 7th to deal with an important issue. As advertised, the premise of the talk was that consent is considered to be the foundation of proper human interactions, but yet it is not frequenty discussed as a concept in it’s own right. How is consent…
Former Bogpaper columnist, James Delingpole, wrote two thoughtful pieces, voicing his worries that Ukip lacks an overarching ideology. He fears that, without any such firm commitment, Ukip, too, will succumb to political pressure from interest groups. But comrade Delingpole’s concerns are misplaced. Democracy trumps ideology every time. A preliminary question. What makes Ukip so special?…
It would seem there is among the politically-minded professoriate a widespread belief that there is such a thing as “rational ignorance,” which holds that it is not particularly rational for any potential voter to waste time studying up on political affairs, researching candidates’ histories and positions, and so forth. Maintaining ignorance of the political factors…
This talk comprises a few related and modified entries taken from the draft of my forthcoming Dictionary of Anti-Politics. I shall begin by giving some libertarian analysis of the ideas of democracy, republic, and monarchy—and asking what political systems the UK and the USA really have. Then, as elected oligarchy is dominant, I shall consider…
Just a quick note to remind everyone that the Olympic-proof Southwark drinks are going ahead as usual tomorrow. Jan C Lester will be giving a talk on the uneccessary evil of democracies and republics. Jan’s books on libertarianism are to be found in the reading list.
August’s drinks event at the Rose and Crown co-incides with the 236th anniversary of the signing of US Declaration of Independence on August 2nd 1776. This lesser known date trailed its publication by almost a month but was a key ritualistic step in the creation of the world’s first nation founded upon an idea. The…
