 Bertrand Russell Quotes 366 |
"The State" is an abstraction; it does not feel pleasure or pain, it has no hopes or fears, and what we think of as its purposes are really the purposes of individuals who direct it. When we think concretely, not abstractly, we find, in place of "the State," certain people who have more power than falls to the share of most men. And so glorification of "the State" turns out to be, in fact, glorification of a governing minority.
Source: Bertrand Russell: Authority and the Individual, 1949, chap. 6: Individual and Social Ethics.
More info.:https://russell-j.com/cool/40T-0601.HTM
* a brief comment: original text in Japanese, translated with DeepL.com (free version)
Even when the word 'people' should be used, politicians often replace it with the word 'nation' People are "carried away by words" and before long, they find themselves wandering down a dangerous path. Although we say that military balance is important, in reality, we both try to have a superior military force to that of our 'virtual enemy', which leads to ever-increasing military expenditure. Weak countries rarely go to war against large countries. They either attack a small country or support a small country to wage war against a small country that is a friend of the hostile country.
The three attached images seem to be a good representation of the powers that be, don't they? Imagine the intention or subconscious of those in power who want to include an 'emergency clause' in the Constitution.