[fredley]

Unfortunately, there's a misconception underlying this one that there are 'good people' and 'bad people', and the role of Government is to protect the former from the latter. This of course flies in the face of the reality that crime is committed by otherwise ordinary people under extraordinary circumstances.

Under this rhetoric - widely subscribed to by the right wing and tabloid press, it seems a logical step that the role of Government should be to impede 'bad people' as much as possible - "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear" is an obvious corollary from this position too.

[dm319]

I find this comment particularly interesting. I have a suspicion that believing in good and bad people is a product of fairytales and religion. I've never quite understood why authoritarianism, religion and the right seem to go together, maybe this is part of puzzle.

[fredley]

I don't think religion etc. is to blame personally, it's a simple extension of believing that I am good, and I am like her, and she is good, and we are not like them. We never see ourselves as the people who could tip over the edge.

[waqf]

Fairytales and religion wouldn't be so popular if people didn't already have an innate desire to believe in good and bad people.

[ebcode]

Then again, people wouldn't have an innate desire to believe in good and bad people if fairytales and religion weren't already so popular.