In his essay “of the Independence of Parliament” (first published ca. 1741), David Hume defends the idea of the Enlightenment that Constitutions must assume that individuals, including politicians, are self -important and that rulers will try to abuse their power. A famous passage reads:
When limiting every government system and resolving the different controls and continuous controls of the Constitution, every man should be assumed to be one farmerAnd to have no other end, in all his actions, than private interests.
Consequently, a Constitution Knavish must be, that is, to determine controls and baldi in a way that will limit the self -interest of some (Hume mentions the executive power) the self -interest of others (in the legislative power). Contemporary public selection theory further emphasizes that political analysis must assume that politicians are just as self -important as ordinary individuals. (The reader who is interested in a defense of “Knavish Constitutions” can consult Brian Kogelmann, “to defend Knavish Constitutions,” Public choice196 [2023]pp. 141-156.)
PE Bose Hume underestimates the potential threat of the Chief Executive, especially in today’s context of an extremely powerful state. The Chief Executive can be more dangerous than a crook if he happens to have character defects or cognitive shortages. If Hume came back to life, I would respectfully imagine that he might be more explicit about politicians at the helm of the state and add something like:
It is not impossible that a ruler, chosen or not, one Ignorant idiot.
Hume must have known the danger. Caligula (emperor from 37 to 41 AD) presented himself as a god. A “Crazy and unpredictable tyrant“He was killed by a member of his Praetorian guard. Britannica), had killed his own mother and his first wife. He gave public performances as a poet and Lyre player. After an uprising on the border, he Allegedly said“I just have to appear and sing to have peace in Gaul again.”
Hume could reject my proposed amendment as too polemic for his scientific attitude. I would point out that “knave” was a very strong and pejorative word when he was writing, and that he emphasized it in his essay; And that my proposed addendum simply emphasizes the danger of personal power.
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Statue of David Hume in Edinburgh