- People have not yet learned to live together without compounding their vices.
- Ingenuity may increase our treasures, but it can not satisfy our wants.
- Self interest makes it impossible to view social policy without regard for our own interests.
- Force and coercion are an inevitable part of society organization.
- The power that prevents anarchy in INTRAgroup relations encourages anarchy in INTERgroup relations.
- Peace is always uneasy and unjust.
My thoughts: Dr. Niebuhr lays out a harsh, yet realistic assessment of the very difficult job of living together as many humans on just one planet. We form groups, families, classes, and nations of like-minded, or similarly interested parties, and those interests by definition clash with the differing interests of others.
Given these issues, is there any hope for establishing and operating a political system that does not suffer from them?
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