Category: Politics, Power, and Governance

My reading of Schmitt.

(a) democratic polities are slow and error prone. (duh)

(b) there are times where exception is necessary, by exercise of an authority (dictator) (duh)

(c) sometimes governments need to be reorganized (not really, just people replaced or functions added or subtracted)

(d) All polities are in competition against others to institute an order more favorable than the one extant, and this process is why we have states. (duh)

(e) Germans moralize about right and good and he’s another victim of it. Government is a competitive necessity not a preference, there is only one order we know of that is durable, so use it and stop trying to be creative.

Ergo: The romans were right that a dynamic government is necessary, that can switch between dictatorial during periods of necessity, and republican during regularities, and semi -democratic in times of prosperity.

The british solved this by instead dividing powers. So did the americans, although in practice the president is only dictator over some aspects of war.

For reasons hoppe has illustrated monarchies are superior to dictatorships precisely because there is no competition for the top position, and the monarchy can appoint dictators(generals) and override the parliament (businessmen) as needed.