The delusion of political violence
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The delusion of political violence
While disagreements can be deep and fierce, looking for a minimal common ground and peaceful ways to settle conflicts is likely more valuable in the long term.
The delusion of political violence
Once physical elimination is off the table, you still have to share the society you live in with the people you committed violence against. Political violence is typically not the end of a conflict but the start of more tension and violence.
The delusion of political violence
However, our propensity to entertain violence is likely miscalibrated to our modern world, where the cost of violence is very high for the perpetrator.
The delusion of political violence
We too easily ignore that the only reason society stays civil and well-ordered is our shared expectations that it will continue to work that way.
The delusion of political violence
“civil and well-ordered” ist eine persönliche Wahrnehmung. Für viele Menschen ist das Gegenteil der Fall
This process, in the case of revolutions, spirals out of control. Then, too often, all hell breaks loose. The breaking down of social order leads to a Hobbesian state of nature where every party is at risk of political violence, and often opts to use it themselves pre-emptively. Mass executions and situations bordering on genocide often ensue.
The delusion of political violence
die Angst vor der Revolution als “barbarischer Zustand” - “Hobbesian State” > racist? nachlesen - Perspektive des Autors: Sicherheit im System > man könnte diese Worte nicht aus Gaza oder dem Sudan oder Haiti etc etc verfassen. Der Zustand äußerster Grausamkeit und Chaos ist dort Realität. es kann nicht schlimmer werden, man hat nichts zu verlieren.
The Folk Theorem states precisely this. As the time horizon gets longer, people are more and more able to approximate full cooperation.
The delusion of political violence
Fantasies of political violence are a mistake, in the sense that they are not even advantageous from the perspective of those who hold them. They reflect a likely evolutionary mismatch between our psychological architecture and the modern environment in which we live.