Definitely too political. I'm also probably completely unfair (taking the quote out of context - which is always tempting with such strong quotes).
I certainly didn't mean to imply that you were pampered or authoritarian (even though I seem to have). I'm sorry if my glib and harsh reply was rude or disrespectful in any way.
When the democratisation program began in England, there were about 200 crimes for which capital sentences could be awarded (and a women had been burned at the stake in 1790 for counterfeiting). On the whole democracies have much more moderate laws (perhaps because the government is seen as more legitimate).
A lot needs to be said for trust, self-discipline, cultural values, ties of mutual respect, thankfulness and broader social pressure.
A lot of individual people don't behave as they should, but typical behaviour in a society, and what values groups hold, can mean the difference between the military taking over or democratic opposition being respected. There are a lot of cases where fear of the law wouldn't prevent people from acting out (but other things do).
A lot of small societies (eg. indigenous peoples) don't have anything like a modern legal system, but are still able to regulate behaviour.
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02-06-2011, 12:43 PM
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