have a question about ideology, specifically how the state of exception comes to be normalized in the population. There is no good philosophical-legal reason for the states right to regulate movement of people it deems non-citizens. Because once it does that it denies the Rule of Law (i.e. the classical liberal view of equality under the law). If non-citizens are treated differently than citizens, than the rule of law is not applicable, and it resembles a state of exception (e.g. the Sovereign can do whatever the heck it wants to people not deemed citizens). So if we look at the disputes in the U.S., on the immigration reform issue, the mainstream Left (perhaps more accurate would be the Centre) and the mainstream Right seem to agree that the state has a right to regulate the movement of peoples even if the mainstream Left wants a more paternalistic-humanitarian state that regulates movements but tries to also care for the worthy victims of oppression etc. But the problem as I see it, is that no one in this debate represents the universalist reading (following Arendt) of the Declaration of Independence. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. So mainstream debates simply ignore the universalist spirit of this argument (it doesnt say all American citizens are created equal..... Instead mainstream debates are focused in denying the classical liberal spirit, for their state of exception view, which is not philosophically coherent (We can either have the rule of law, or not. There is simply no middle-ground on this issue). So liberals and conservatives (and the vast majority of the public) are pretty much operating philosophically on 16th-17th century level assumptions about the sovereign state WHEN it comes to people who are not deemed citizens. So we have this paradox where demands for free movement of people (e.g. No One is Illegal Campaigns) is not a radical left demand but simply wants to institutionalize the spirit of classical liberalism. To cite Martin Luther King Jr., Be true to what you said on paper. All No One is Illegal campaigns want is a society which behaves according to 18th century assumptions about the Rule of Law/Equality under the law NOT the 16/17th century level of assumptions. https://youtube/watch?v=Oehry1JC9Rk So why do so many people come to normalize ideologically the State of exception (were living in the 16/17th century) INSTEAD of the philosophically coherent notion of the Rule of Law. It does seem to suggest that capitalism makes us very stupid.
Posted on: Sat, 18 Oct 2014 17:17:51 +0000
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