So the Role of Government used to be to Establish Order. That's something the Romans and the Chinese could agree on.
The the English parliament stumbled itself into winning the English Civil War. So they decided the role of government was the Protection of Property. Not a bad idea, all things considered.
Now though we know a bit more about how society works. Let's say we become worthy and assume power. What's the role of government now?
Let me propose: to break malignant signaling spirals.
[…] The Role of Government […]
How would the government prevent the inquisitorial zeal in extirpating malignant signalling spirals from becoming a malignant spiral in itself? Especially since this sort of accusation is easy to make in a plausible way, justifiably or not.
The role of the government is getting more power for itself because that's what it has the incentive to do. One cannot really say 'The government should do that' and have it do that. And it's not 'If we become worthy and assume power', You must get power and then will be worthy because you got the power. And if you get power then you will be continuing to do what got you into power, otherwise you will lose it.
Shepard the genetic legacy of the citizenry by using incentives - defectors don't reproduce, cooperators do. The highly capable have more descendants, the incapable, less. Here's the major problem with the second part though - regression to the mean means that the children of a meritocratic elite will be less capable than their parents. Parents would rather ensure that their children stay in the elite rather than sacrifice for the good of the nation and mentor the children of the non-elite. If they can't do that, then they adopt the mafia "bust out" mentality to the institutions they run - extract everything they can before it totally collapses. I'm not entirely sure how to solve the second problem while still keeping the first in mind.
[…] Source: Bloody Shovel […]
Monasteries. Isolate those who wish to participate in malignant signaling spirals away from the general population and make them take a vow of silence.
"Let me propose: to break malignant signaling spirals." Not exactly. The purpose of government should be the containment of holiness-spiralling, and the prevention of holiness-spirallers from attaining power. Make it low-status to be holier-than-thou, and high-status to be successful in actually productive fields, and let holier-than-thou people perish by their own poison.
Extremely simple. Force the inquisitors to remain completely anonymous. No persistent identity = no signal.
Signalling spirals are different from holier-than-thou in the same way that hyperinflation is different from banknotes. Society needs its Brahmin to function in the same way it needs a stable currency. When we talk shit about the priestly caste we shouldn't kid ourselves into thinking we're going to eliminate that drive.
The purpose of government is all of the above. Law and order, rule of law, protection of property, break malignant spirals and more
to break malignant signaling spirals ⊂ to solve coordination problems
I'm sure the idea that the role of government was the protection of property was thought to be preposterous, for good reason. And yet it worked reasonably well. Of course nothing is perfect: but it's a good schelling point for elites to discuss while gathering at the Palais Royal.
agree. it's not a very abstract concept . The govt. pool resources to do things that individual entities cannot (such as national defense)
Let me propose: to break malignant signaling spirals. not if they have become the government, in which it is too late. Reset and start over seems to be the only way
The purpose of government is the maximization of status of the ruling coalition. That's the truth. Everything else is rhetoric. If it's rhetoric, we need good rhetoric. This is a proposal.
Kick your feet up, sit back and relax. A gov without an agenda, particularly a political agenda, will help set a tone that social tomfoolery, signaling or otherwise, isn't worthy of a murmur of response. This approach will kick out a crucial crutch that so many of these losers rely upon when developing their inane 'views'. I suspect a fair portion would give up their deceits, without realizing it of course, due to lack of feedback. Those who insisted on continuing would be singling themselves out as the obvious and easy targets for the first wave of bloodletting. You'd also have a better idea who your own supporters are helping to cut the wheat from the chaff.
The way I see it, 21st century competent statecraft (the Right) will essentially consist of occupying the position of sovereign power so that incompetence and demagogy (the Left) don't get access to it. "To break malignant signaling spirals" sounds pretty close to it.
>You must get power and then will be worthy because you got the power. This. Mandate of Heaven in a nutshell.
The holders of the Mandate of Heaven always retconned the history books so that they were worthy already by their grandfather's time.
I'm pretty sure that this is what the old testament was designed to do. Obviously it didn't work, for a couple of reasons. Firstly, those prone to signaling spirals seem incapable of awareness of them in their own lives. I can demonstrate to a secular how there are signalling spirals in orthodox Judaism, and to the orthodox, I can demonstrate secular spirals, but neither sees his own. Secondly, the lure seems irresistible. The priests were the government, with clear, written guidance on how to stop spirals. Material success empowered non priests, who reinterpreted the words to mean magic, and spirals commenced until Bar Kochba. I have some more thoughts on this, but don't like sharing them in public.