Elected presidents governing by decree, hung parliaments, and courts taking political decisions following (i) their ideological beliefs (eg, SCOTUS), and/or (2) NGO’s (eg, NRA, Urgenda verdict). As a result, the executive branch is curbing the power of the judicial branch in several countries (eg, Hungary, Poland, USA).
Recently, Noah Feldman, a Harvard law professor, claimed in Bloomberg Opinion that Ending Roe Is Institutional Suicide for Supreme Court. He may be right. A different perspective, however, is an institutional coup d’état. The Supreme Court is making legislation outside the legislative branch.
Is the ‘trias politica’ obsolete? Why? What will be next?
I suppose lots of people do no longer believe in the need for checks & balances, which is the essence of segregation of powers or trias politica. In their view, checks & balances will only slow down power. Why these people believe that unchecked power would (only) take ‘good’ decisions, is a mystery to me.
The strongman might be an appealing belief but political strongmen often appear to be fools, whose only aim is illicit enrichment (eg, Erdogan, Putin, Trump).
Animals choose their leaders based on knowledge or physical power (source) but not love. Humans choose their leaders based upon love (eg, idolation, projected power). Animals resist misguided leaders while humans do not. The difference is in genuine (animals) versus political survival (humans).
Just a thought: has the lack of our need for survival been responsible for developing our beliefs?
Several days ago, a friend sent me this cartoon image.
Our beliefs frequently result in our stupidity.
A 2021 Psyche article stated that “stupidity is a very specific cognitive failing”, In my blogs of 2021 and 2022, I defined stupidity as a blind spot in our thinking.
Today is the first time that I’ve found an (evolutionary) explanation for our beliefs and human stupidity: the lack of our need for survival.
To date, the word ‘survival’ only occurred in two of my nearly 3,000 blog titles: survival of the fittest (2020) and the survival of reason in a climate of fear (2021).
A final thought: is our survival most relevant when we consider it least relevant?
“It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” An alleged quote by Charles Darwin (1809-1892), an English (evolutionary) biologist.
It’s the first time (1989) by Loïs Lane
band, lyrics, video, Wiki-band, Wiki-song
It’s the first time I can see
I can see a light shining in your eyes
Is it that I never tried is it that I try to hide
Note: all markings (bold, italic, underlining) by LO unless in quotes or stated otherwise.
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