[-empyre-] laws, outlaws & pirates

[davin heckman]

Johannes,

I have replied, I think, to some of your concerns in the course of
responding to Marc.

But I think that question of "human dignity" is, perhaps, the thing
that matters most, as indicated by its absence from most discussions
of human dignity.

I think it ought to be the focal point for solidarity.  If we are all
going to get together and stand up against something, I think it is
better to stand for something.  Revolutions, as you note, are a bit
easy to pull off.  But what comes next is what is truly hard.
However, the most inspiring ones throughout history have managed to
focus on human dignity. Certainly, this is why South Africa stands as
a strong example of peaceful revolution.

I don't know that I am in a position to define human dignity without
dialog, but I do think it is a question that we should not avoid.  And
I think that we should be skeptical of anyone who promises a better
future, but is unwilling to engage with this question.  If you asked
10 people to build a perfect car, but never negotiated an ideal
target, you'd end up with ten different cars:  A monster truck, a
solar car, a military transport with guns and armor, a race car, a
minivan, convertible, a mobile home, a limousine, a bus, a traveling
billboard, a boom truck, etc.  And, of course, this is the bogeyman
held up by neoliberals.....  we offer you choice and pure autonomy.
But at some level, choice must be reasonably restricted.  I think, for
instance, monster trucks should be banned from public roads, just as
army tanks and race cars.  Commercial vehicles should be restricted
and regulated.  And, well, perhaps, we have a real and legitimate
interest in making light rail, buses, bikes, and feet the most
appealing form of transportation in general.  But you cannot even
begin to move towards that ideal if you cannot have the conversation
about the good that we want, so we are stuck with the default nexus of
the profit motive.  (Which, is, not autonomy....  it is dependence on
the "job creators").

Davin