Quote:
Originally Posted by Tanthallas
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Is it personal or social responsibility?
And what is personal responsibility? What is social responsibility? Do you think that you and Hasbin, for example, have the same definition of both?
I really wouldnt oversimplify things like this.
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Personal responsibility to be an educated and reasonable person, and a social responsibility to apply those principles to the political system and participate in making it better. Every nation has the government it deserves. The second you put your hands up and say "Well this is fucked, our government is failing us, all of us citizens are such good people but look at those fucks in Washington/Wall Street/Halliburton", you're doing representative democracy a disservice.
Criticisms of authority should always be grounded by an examination of the origins of that authority. For example, people blast the government for excessive spending and an inability to control debt. Meanwhile, excessive credit card debt, misguided loan debt, and just generally irresponsible spending are
rampant among Americans. Why do we hold the government to a higher standard, when that kind of paternalism is completely antithetic to the enlightenment liberalism under which our political legacy originated. It's okay to criticize the failings of government, but outright blame bothers me.