I think I just realised why humankind has such a thing for monotheism.
Ever since the dawn of our race, we must have seen how power corrupts. Early tribes will not have been any different than modern democracies in that regard.
From the outside, smaller countries like Switzerland, Denmark, or Island look like democracy works fairly well there, whereas when you live in places like France, Germany or the UK, you cannot help but feel that the system favours corruption at high level. I have a hunch that people in the US see it happen, too.
I would argue that the relation is exponential, i.e. twice the power corrupts more than twice as much.
I reckon we instinctively trust someone with limited power a lot more easily than a top politician. A concept that is directly based on this assumption is currently being discussed: "liquid democracy" (in essence: every decision is made by everyone. You can give your voice on any subject to someone you trust on that specific subject. Or you can decide yourself.)
On the other hand, we are lazy in the sense that we like to hand over decisions that do not directly affect us to someone else. That's the whole idea behind government. Nobody can be an expert on everything. I'm sure nobody wants to, either. I am quite happy for someone else to decide on how cities should develop in the near future or how to get food onto my plate.
I think it is totally natural for us to long for someone who has all the power and at the same time uses it wisely and benevolently, always keeping the master plan in mind.
So we made ourselves gods, or rather one god each.
And because we have learned that so much power must corrupt, that god has to have supernatural powers. It's just not possible to do his job well without them!
Even the idea of removing human traits from power by letting machines take over has been discussed a lot, and it goes along the same line. Imagine a ruler who has no concept of greed! If you're a geek, you might not trust a religion, but the logic of a computer is something you easily understand and trust.
I guess it won't come as a surprise that I think this is naive.
The "mechanical ruler" has to be programmed. The complexity is overwhelming. It is highly likely that it'll make decisions that seem random. But the real issue is: it is just a machine! We programmed it, why would we follow it's directions? Especially if it makes unpopular decisions... no way we would.
In essence, I think we have to keep the greed and corruption under control. It's all we can do, really.
Ever since the dawn of our race, we must have seen how power corrupts. Early tribes will not have been any different than modern democracies in that regard.
From the outside, smaller countries like Switzerland, Denmark, or Island look like democracy works fairly well there, whereas when you live in places like France, Germany or the UK, you cannot help but feel that the system favours corruption at high level. I have a hunch that people in the US see it happen, too.
I would argue that the relation is exponential, i.e. twice the power corrupts more than twice as much.
I reckon we instinctively trust someone with limited power a lot more easily than a top politician. A concept that is directly based on this assumption is currently being discussed: "liquid democracy" (in essence: every decision is made by everyone. You can give your voice on any subject to someone you trust on that specific subject. Or you can decide yourself.)
On the other hand, we are lazy in the sense that we like to hand over decisions that do not directly affect us to someone else. That's the whole idea behind government. Nobody can be an expert on everything. I'm sure nobody wants to, either. I am quite happy for someone else to decide on how cities should develop in the near future or how to get food onto my plate.
I think it is totally natural for us to long for someone who has all the power and at the same time uses it wisely and benevolently, always keeping the master plan in mind.
So we made ourselves gods, or rather one god each.
And because we have learned that so much power must corrupt, that god has to have supernatural powers. It's just not possible to do his job well without them!
Even the idea of removing human traits from power by letting machines take over has been discussed a lot, and it goes along the same line. Imagine a ruler who has no concept of greed! If you're a geek, you might not trust a religion, but the logic of a computer is something you easily understand and trust.
I guess it won't come as a surprise that I think this is naive.
The "mechanical ruler" has to be programmed. The complexity is overwhelming. It is highly likely that it'll make decisions that seem random. But the real issue is: it is just a machine! We programmed it, why would we follow it's directions? Especially if it makes unpopular decisions... no way we would.
In essence, I think we have to keep the greed and corruption under control. It's all we can do, really.
