Authority

I have a problem with authority. I think most of my views come down to that. I don’t like the idea that a person (or persons) get to control other people or determine their future. To me, controlling another person is to consider yourself superior to them. It is to claim that you know how they should live their life better than they do. In fact, it is claiming that you own their life in some way, that you are a superhuman or they are subhuman.

Some people are unapologetic in this claim. They say that the good of “society” outweighs all individuals and that they, through some sort of magic I guess, know what is good for society. All government operates this way, whether it is a dictator or a democracy. Government is claiming ownership over the individual and controlling what they do. It may disguise it’s actions as protecting individuals from themselves or bettering society, but it is all about control. I hate that.

Most organized religions operate the same way. Government is really just another form of religion, and vice versa. At some point most religions stopped being about pursuing truth or helping others and became about controlling what they do with their bodies and minds, all with threat of hell and torture if they disobey. They are basically threatening you with supernatural jail. They claim they know what God wants, through some sort of magic, and if you don’t listen to them then you will be punished. The way you live must conform to their interpretation of a book over a thousand years old that has been retranslated and edited a half dozen times. I hate that.

Outside of religion and government there are other social norms that most of society enforces. What you do with your body (who you fuck, what you wear, etc) and what you do with your mind (who you are attracted to, what life you want to live, your personal philosophy) all face scrutiny by the public. They may pass laws so that men with guns will enforce the norms, or they may make it a spiritual argument to force conformity. Or, society many just ostracize you, consider you a freak, and push you to the fringe. I hate that.

I hate authority. I hate the idea that you should respect someone simply because they have power over you. Presidents and Popes are not special, they are not superhuman, we are not their subjects. And the agents they send to enforce their decrees are not special either. They are simply human, they get diarrhea, have weird sex dreams, and make mistakes. No amount of training means we should respect them just because they have a badge or a funny hat. In fact, we should respect them less because they choose a profession that puts them in power over others. They sought out a job that treats the rest of the population like subhumans, maybe they had good intentions but it is results that matter, not intentions.