the sword and the lie

John Stossel on global warming activism, and the self-interest that may lie behind much of it:

It reminds me of George Mason University Economics Department Chairman Don Boudreax’s suggestion that such schemes really mean ‘government seizing enormous amounts of additional power in order to embark upon schemes of social engineering - schemes whose pursuit gratifies the abstract fantasies of the theory class and, simultaneously, lines the very real pockets of politically powerful corporations, organizations, and “experts.”’ He is so right. The abstract fantasies of the theory class will soon send huge chunks of your money to politicians, friends, activist scientists, and politically savvy corporations.

My theory is that the chief motivating factor behind both the state and religion is aggrandizement. The more one can control the actions of others, the more one can exploit them. And the two most effective ways of controlling others is (1) through force and (2) by convincing people to uncritically believe what you say: in other words, through the sword and the lie. Secular and spiritual authority figures always give lofty reasons for their positions: security, stability, and prosperity in this world and the next. But these justifications are masks for self-interest. Rulers have always prospered more than the ruled: a fact that is often recognized. What is neglected is, especially in earlier times, the material comfort of spiritual authorities in relation to their “flock.”