Will Humanity Be Exploited?#
Throughout history, people have envisioned an ideal society. From the Great Harmony society to a communist society, from utopia to others. Perhaps it's a small goal, like a moderately prosperous society, a democratic society, a rule-of-law society, a welfare state... or perhaps a reminiscence of ancient societies, a longing for the Greek society or the so-called Yao, Shun, and Yu era of Confucianism.
On the other hand, there exists a society where extreme exploitation, oppression, and oppression of people are commonplace. Perhaps it's the slaves in a slave society being whipped to build pyramids, or the forced laborers during the feudal society under the orders of the first emperor to repair the Great Wall, or perhaps it's the workers in a capitalist society tightening screws in factories. In such societies, individuals lose their freedom and dignity, becoming objects of the rulers' domination.
It is evident that oppression has always existed, and exploitation is everywhere. However, utopia remains utopia; the so-called ideal society exists only in ideals. Just as I recall a certain zero-point essay, I would prefer to live in the news xx. At the end of the article Transcending the Illusions of Marxism, I lamented:
Pointing out others' mistakes is not difficult; it is the wanton replacement of private ownership with public ownership. But how to solve the problem of human exploitation, whether we need to solve the problem of human exploitation, whether humanity will be exploited, when will humanity not exploit animals, when will humans be exploited by animals?... These questions are the most perplexing, even terrifying.
If there are three theories: the theory of oppression, the theory of utopia, and the compromise theory, I might choose the compromise theory.
Because oppression is certain. When humanity forms groups, oppression has already emerged. Groups, like individuals, must have brains, limbs, mouths and anuses, muscles and fat... For this group to grow, it will inevitably differentiate into countless organizations, forming new organs. Brain cells and sperm are both parts of the human body, but they perform different functions. Although I do not understand biology, if measured by existence time, the lifespan of different cells varies greatly. In human society, differences in ability and opportunity, different occupational divisions, and unequal access to resources mean that people are essentially unequal.
Article 33, Paragraph 2 of the Constitution of the People's Republic of China states that all citizens of the People's Republic of China are equal before the law.
Although the constitution cannot be directly used as a basis for judgment, please note that the constitution merely states that everyone is equal before "the law," which does not mean that individuals are equal to one another. The so-called equality in the constitution only applies to the equal application of the law.
Once a person enters a group, it is like dust captured by a river system. In the face of absolute power disparity, it is no longer a mantis trying to stop a chariot, but a mere grain in the vast sea. Thus, being exploited becomes the norm and inevitability within the group.
Limitations of Human Exploitation#
There is a viewpoint that building pyramids is an extremely delicate task that slaves cannot accomplish; it requires free men to complete.
But what makes a person a person, even if they are just a lowly individual within a group, is the possibility of identity exchange between individuals. In human society, there are countless pigs and sheep; although people eat meat, most have never even heard the last gasp of a pig before it dies, yet pigs can never become humans. As long as different classes of people can be interchangeable, then this civilization can be reshuffled and rebuilt. But if one class of people becomes pigs, or another class becomes dragons, then this civilization will absolutely perish, and a new civilization will be born. As for those originally called humans, they have become pigs. And this civilization will no longer be called humanity but rather the civilization of dragons. Just as although kangaroos may outnumber humans in Australia, kangaroos are merely objects of humans.
Since individuals can be replaced by one another, it does not mean that common people cannot govern the country. However, the differences in intelligence, education, and social status among individuals may become obstacles to class mobility, but generally speaking, including the possibilities for their children, are limitless. Everyone still exists within the physical and physiological realm of humanity. In this sense, Rawls' veil of ignorance can be cast, allowing for the discovery of a mechanism to achieve justice.
Therefore, to achieve this purpose, I assume that all parties are behind a veil of ignorance. They do not know how various choices will affect their specific situations; they must evaluate principles not only based on general considerations.
Thus, we assume that all parties do not know certain specific facts. First, no one knows their position in society, their class origin, nor do they know the extent of their innate qualities and natural abilities, their intelligence and strength, etc. Secondly, no one knows their concept of good, the particularity of their reasonable life plans, or even their psychological characteristics: such as a dislike for risk, optimistic or pessimistic temperament. Again, I assume that all parties do not know the economic or political conditions of this society or the level of civilization and culture it can achieve. — Rawls, "A Theory of Justice," the veil of ignorance
Breaking Out of the Deadlock of Group Exploitation#
The Eternal Deadlock of Exploitation#
It is precisely because of the physical similarities of individuals and the resulting interchangeability that there is the complaint, "Do kings and nobles have any special lineage?" Therefore, when exploitation reaches its peak, the collapse of the empire naturally follows. The rise and fall of nations brings suffering to the common people. The people advocate loyalty to the monarch and patriotism, upholding the state. Yet the rulers are like drug addicts drinking poison to quench their thirst, and various interest groups are like excess flesh that is hard to remove, making it difficult to uphold the state. Self-mutilation can indeed bring decades of peace, but not every ruler can withstand the pain of self-infliction.
This is the eternal flaw of a centralized society. As stated in "The Financial Code of the Central Empire":
In a centralized society, financial expansion is inevitable. Even if a small government and small finances can be achieved in the early stages of a dynasty, as the number of bureaucrats expands and government functions grow, the demand for financial revenue will increase, ultimately crushing the private economy.
Attempts to Break Free from Exploitation#
In light of this, to solve the problem, there are two paths. One is to limit desires, alleviate exploitation, and transform the relationship between the ruling class and ordinary individuals within the group. The other is to not limit desires, intensify exploitation, and transform ordinary individuals to create a social foundation with a high tolerance for exploitation.
As mentioned earlier, it is precisely because of the interchangeability of individuals that revolutions can succeed, thus making fairness and justice possible. This is why exploitation is morally condemnable. It is because everyone has infinite possibilities, especially the infinite possibilities that the group cares about, that there is a necessity to construct utopia and a necessity for fairness and justice. A more stable society with relatively less exploitation becomes the greatest interest of the entire group under the veil of ignorance.
To maintain the long-term rule of the ruling class, this exploitation must remain within certain limits, sustaining the stability of group order over time. This is not only a requirement of the ruling class but also a requirement of the group. Being ruled means accepting the order of the group; regardless of who creates the order, this order is needed to achieve functional division.
Autocracy and Democracy#
In a substantive sense, democracy is the system that confirms democratic facts through legal procedures, constructing a democratic system so that the will of the majority can control political power. However, public opinion controlling political power does not mean public opinion controls society. Public opinion merely provides a low-cost path to resolve revolutionary disputes. The reason the U.S. Constitution stipulates the right of the people to resist is that even without specifying the right to resist, the people will still resist when they need to. Specifying the right to resist allows revolution to be a means of settling disputes without completely destroying order and making it impossible to conclude.
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. — Second Amendment to the United States Constitution
Because individuals are interchangeable, exploitation is inevitable. For long-term exploitation, governance, or the survival of the group, there must be a boundary that separates the rulers from the ruled, or in other words, there must be a boundary of power.
The fact of democracy needs the protection of the rule of law, and the rule of law that controls power needs the support of democratic facts. Only such a society can avoid self-destruction and the periodic pains of revolution. It can be said that autocracy and democracy, or human governance and rule of law, are intertwined.
At the same time, to develop democratic facts, the group pays more attention to the development of individuals, granting individuals certain freedoms to develop their own diversity, thereby contributing to the democratic system. Therefore, individuals in a democratic society appear as people because democratic society needs people, not as objects or tools.
In summary, democracy is a stable development model of a group that controls power through a series of systems to curb arbitrary desires. However, the resources and opportunities required to maintain democratic facts are enormous. The efficiency of governance may decline, while the rate of decision-making errors may decrease.
However, in an autocratic society, to maintain its ruling model, it must, on one hand, transform the degree to which individuals can endure exploitation, and on the other hand, continuously eliminate its inherent flaws—the excessive desires of the ruling class. Thus, "maintaining the purity of the revolutionary ranks" and "turning the blade inward" is not an empty phrase but a necessity for maintaining rule. On one hand, slaughter and reshuffling do not have much significance; they are merely routine.
As for transforming the degree to which individuals can endure exploitation, in the article Human Nature and Politics, I believe that the Legalist view of human nature is a perspective on transforming human nature. That is, shaping individuals who are more suitable for exploitation from the perspective of human nature. Specific methods of transformation are as mentioned in the "Book of Lord Shang."
Since ancient times, theories of human nature have often served politics, and Shang Yang's theory of fame and profit is particularly pronounced. Any theory of human nature related to politics must advocate for the transformation of human nature. Today, people value fame and profit; the control of desires and the emergence of a single benefit mentioned in the "Book of Lord Shang" are remarkably similar to today. In the new system of work, housing, and childbirth, human desires are stimulated, direction is lost, and most people become part of a system they cannot escape. But if a person has only limited desires, their situation is truly like competing for a decayed rat. Controlled by a single desire, they lose countless benefits. — Human Nature and Politics
However, transforming human nature is only one aspect. In "Limitations of Human Exploitation," I mentioned that the reason individuals form groups rather than being mere objects of the group is the interchangeability of individuals within the group. If a form of autocratic rule can endure, it must also start from "the interchangeability of individuals," as this is the source of revolution. Pigs and sheep have been ruled for thousands or even tens of thousands of years; why have they not succeeded in their rebellion? Because pigs and sheep are different species from humans, and the power disparity between pigs, sheep, and humans is enormous. If one wishes to maintain long-term rule, it is necessary to physiologically and physically transform the ruled into another kind of pig or sheep, or to make the rulers into a more powerful species.
Thus, hierarchical rule, household registration systems, artisan and military registrations, family planning, and other systems become so important. Of course, achieving a group with two species is relatively difficult. Ultimately, it is about making one part of the population unable to replace another part. Can we create two groups with different intelligences through biotechnology? Can we prohibit intermarriage through reproductive isolation?
The influence of the caste system in India is profound; in addition to the four classes with hierarchical order, there is also a fifth class of untouchables. India, as the world's largest democracy, enshrines the caste system in its constitution to protect the "untouchables." This shows that autocratic systems can fundamentally alter a nation's character.
In today's world, where biotechnology is advanced, creating a new caste system using biotechnology may not be unfeasible. Of course, everything ultimately returns to the essence of the relationship between individuals and groups—interchangeability.
Conclusion#
In facing the relationship between individuals and groups, it is true that some people pursue democracy, but the pleasure and stimulation brought by an autocratic society are undeniable for its upper class. Because compared to democratic societies, rulers in autocratic societies can enjoy services that democratic societies buy with money, as well as services that cannot be bought with money in democratic societies.
Democracy and autocracy are not a matter of which is stronger or weaker, nor can we accurately measure which is stronger or weaker. Democracy relies on the infinite potential brought about by individual development, while autocracy relies on the obedience and effectiveness derived from the degree of exploitation of the ruled. Comparing the strengths of these two as a measure of institutional superiority is meaningless. If autocracy can establish a new caste, it may not be unable to endure. Although democracy emphasizes individuals, it may not escape early demise.
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