Judging from the general shape of historical trends, it looks as though Governments, like living things, are operational only so long as they are in dynamic equilibrium. That the first thing any group setting out to establish a new government must recognize is that government is a dynamic system, and that there can not ever be a secure, stable, dependable government, in the sense that all men, at all times, have always wanted —a government secure and stable in the sense that you can count on it to remain what it is.
The moment a government does become stable, dependable—something you can count on from generation to generation—it’s dead.
Rome, which was one of the first large-scale true republics, showed the syndrome that has appeared in every century since; it started off with an oligarchy of wise citizens, the patricians. Citizenship was hereditary, of course. And genetics being what it is, that is unstable—but unstable in a random, not a dynamic, fashion. All the molecules in a mass of gas may be moving at ten miles per second—but it may be either an extremely hot gas standing still, with molecules moving at random, or a cold gas moving at high velocity. What government needs is not the instability of random effects, simple heat, but the instability of dynamic motion.
When genetics gets in its licks on an hereditary class, two things are happening: The Ins are, usually, a minority of unusually competent people, at the start. Random genetics will tend to level this group downward toward the norm. And, meanwhile, the larger group of Outs is continuing, by genetic statistics, to produce abnormally talented individuals who want, and deserve, position at the In level. Being abnormally talented, they're apt to work out ways and means of getting there, too.
Scanning Roman history—the
And you’ll find it at work in every other historical civilization, too. Specifically including modern history, in both the United States and the U.S.S.R.
No culture is going to work well if it seeks to suppress its individuals of high talent; it doesn’t pay to try to oppress men who are smarter than you are yourself. You can enslave someone who is stronger than you are, or more numerous—but things are going to get into extremely bad trouble if you try it with the individuals who are smarter than you.
A government can work, and work well, which denies the vote to 80% of its people—provided that 80% is simply strong, determined, courageous, numerous, but stupid. That is, in fact, the situation that has obtained in each of the world’s historical periods of great growth and accomplishment.
However, if the system pushes so much as 1% of the brilliant, competent and determined down into the ruled group, and out of the ruling— that 1% will destroy the system. The 80%
The trouble is that those who are not ruling are very sure that they could do a much better job—-and that they "have a right to" the things they want, and know they can never earn. They will, inevitably, blame the system, not their own failure to earn what they want, no matter how many times they see individuals who start beside them wind up far above.
The fool exists always, and the prime characteristic is that while you can readily make a wise man feel uncertain of his wisdom, it is absolutely impossible to make a fool doubt his wisdom. His every failure is someone else’s fault, or the evil influence of sheer bad luck, or ... he always has some answer.
Therefore, we have as observational data: All men believe themselves competent to rule. And while the wise and competent believe they are competent to rule, the fools are unshakably convinced of the certainty of their competence.
This factor alone will assure the instability of any government men ever seek to erect. The very nature of men assures a power-source to keep dynamic action going.
That power-source can either produce random action—sheer destructive heat—or can be channeled into progressive dynamic stability.