Again, it is claimed that persons are nothing but raw material. It is not for them to will their own improvement; they are incapable of it. According to Saint- Just, only the legislator is capable of doing this. Persons are merely to be what the legislator wills them to be. According to Robespierre, who copies Rousseau literally, the legislator begins by decreeing the end for which the commonwealth has come into being. Once this is determined, the government has only to direct the physical and moral forces of the nation toward that end. Meanwhile, the inhabitants of the nation are to remain completely passive. And according to the teachings of Billaud- Varennes, the people should have no prejudices, no affections, and no desires except those authorized by the legislator. He even goes so far as to say that the inflexible austerity of one man is the foundation of a republic.

In cases where the alleged evil is so great that ordinary governmental procedures cannot cure it, Mably recommends a dictatorship to promote virtue: "Resort," he says, "to an extraordinary tribunal with considerable powers for a short time. The imagination of the citizens needs to be struck a hard blow." This doctrine has not been forgotten. Listen to Robespierre:

"The principle of the republican government is virtue, and the means required to establish virtue is terror. In our country we desire to substitute morality for selfishness, honesty for honor, principles for customs, duties for manners, the empire of reason for the tyranny of fashion, contempt of vice for contempt of poverty, pride for insolence, greatness of soul for vanity, love of glory for love of money, good people for good companions, merit for intrigue, genius for wit, truth for glitter, the charm of happiness for the boredom of pleasure, the greatness of man for the littleness of the great, a generous, strong, happy people for a good-natured, frivolous, degraded people; in short, we desire to substitute all the virtues and miracles of a republic for all the vices and absurdities of a monarchy."

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目录(75章)

Preface

Life Is a Gift from God

What Is Law ?

A Just and Enduring Government

The Complete Perversion of the Law

A Fatal Tendency of Mankind

Property and Plunder

Victims of Lawful Plunder

The Results of Legal Plunder

The Fate of Non-Conformists

Who Shall Judge?

The Reason Why Voting Is Restricted

The Answer Is to Restrict the Law

The Fatal Idea of Legal Plunder

Perverted Law Causes Conflict

Slavery and Tariffs Are Plunder

Two Kinds of Plunder

The Law Defends Plunder

How to Identify Legal Plunder

Legal Plunder Has Many Names

Socialism Is Legal Plunder

The Choice Before Us

The Proper Function of the Law

The Seductive Lure of Socialism

Enforced Fraternity Destroys Liberty

Plunder Violates Ownership

Three Systems of Plunder

Law Is Force

Law Is a Negative Concept

The Political Approach

The Law and Charity

The Law and Education

The Law and Morals

A Confusion of Terms

The Influence of Socialist Writers

The Socialists Wish to Play God

The Socialists Despise Mankind

A Defense of Compulsory Labor

A Defense of Paternal Government

The Idea of Passive Mankind

Socialists Ignore Reason and Facts

Socialists Want to Regiment People

A Famous Name and an Evil Idea

A Frightful Idea

The Leader of the Democrats

Socialists Want Forced Conformity

Legislators Desire to Mold Mankind

Legislators Told How to Manage Men

A Temporary Dictatorship

Socialists Want Equality of Wealth

The Error of the Socialist Writers

What Is Liberty?

Philanthropic Tyranny

The Socialists Want Dictatorship

Dictatorial Arrogance

The Indirect Approach to Despotism

Napoleon Wanted Passive Mankind

The Vicious Circle of Socialism

The Doctrine of the Democrats

The Socialist Concept of Liberty

Socialists Fear All Liberties

The Superman Idea

The Socialists Reject Free Choice

The Cause of French Revolutions

The Enormous Power of Government

Politics and Economics

Proper Legislative Functions

Law and Charity Are Not the Same

The High Road to Communism

The Basis for Stable Government

Justice Means Equal Rights

The Path to Dignity and Progress

Proof of an Idea

The Desire to Rule over Others

Let Us Now Try Liberty