
Josiah Royce:  The philosopher we need today? - lermontov
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/24/opinion/josiah-royce-loyalty.html
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bobthechef
There’s nothing new above about the idea of serving community. There’s nothing
new about purpose. Furthermore, the idea of divisiveness as a measure of how
good the cause is is problematic if it isn’t grounded in truth. Take the pro-
life and pro-choice causes. Are they divisive? They certainly divide society.
The two groups aim for conflicting ends that cannot be reconciled. The
conflict need not be violent, but a conflict there is regardless. Truth,
however, paves the way out of the conflict. In practice, what there will be
differences of opinion about what the truth is, so conflict is inevitable.
Major problems occur when those differences are affect the viability of a
society.

So what exactly does non-divisiveness solve? In the absence of truth, the
resolving of division becomes the task of power. The less powerful causes that
disagree with the more powerful causes are abolished. Who gains the upper hand
is anyone’s guess.

I submit that divisions are expected in this life, but a reduction of
divisions can occur when we begin to take the truth seriously. That is the
only way we can develop the prudence needed to achieve reconciliation.

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Horatio9000
I would argue that the hierarchy of loyalties discussed at the end of the
article (Family, Community, Mankind, Life) comes from our positions in the
Tree of Life produced by the Genetic Algorithm. We protect and grow our
branches, starting locally. Hence racism. There is also a strong geographic
component.

It's interesting to look back through history when communities who were
perpetually at war ally to fight a greater external threat, only to fall back
to civil war when jousting for regional dominance.

Peace is the real art, but can only be achieved when no-one has any just cause
to overthrow the system. One that enforces a collection of fair laws that all
can agree on.

The evolution of our legal systems through the ages is one of our greatest
accomplishments. A community answer to the question "What is fair?"

~~~
ekstudent
I’d argue the legal system in big American cities is tragically flawed and
results in hundreds of thousands of lives unjustly diminished or destroyed. To
me, that’s cause to overthrow the system.

In California, they’re trying to do this by eliminating bails and making minor
crimes non-crimes (both I disagree with).

I’m currently in a minor legal dispute which has nearly destroyed my life. In
my case, former federal prosecutors employed by one of the most powerful law
firms in the world are seemingly co-counsel with the city prosecutor. The
Judge asked the city prosecutor a question and the former federal prosecutor
whispered in his ear, and the city prosecutor repeated it verbatim to the
judge.

For this minor charge, I had my zero bail revoked and set for $75,000. I had
felony undercover warrant detectives and private investigators hunt me down.
All my property was allegedly stolen from a robbery of a police warehouse.

I can’t even legally talk about the case or I’ll be sent to jail. And the
charge against me is misdemeanor vandalism.

The mega billionaire who employs the corrupt federal officials has them asking
the city prosecutor to have me remove online comments about him (which I
didn’t make) and other bizarre requests.

The bail system is corrupt, the public defenders collude with the prosecutors
with generic 3-year plea templates, and the police agency is so corrupt that
their former Sheriff is in federal prison. Hundreds of thousands of mostly
poor people are put into an insane, terrible jail system, that provokes more
crime and destroys more lives.

One so corrupt that the FBI has cameras inside it to prevent the Sheriff
Deputies from beating the inmates.

What is fair? Being rich with private attorneys.

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telesilla
This was a refreshing read. It reminds me of a book I was sent recently:
[https://www.waterstones.com/book/team-human/douglas-
rushkoff...](https://www.waterstones.com/book/team-human/douglas-
rushkoff/9780393651690)

"Rushkoff argues that we are essentially social creatures and that we achieve
our greatest aspirations when we work together-not as individuals."

