Serialised book (with a progressively updated >>dashboard/ToC<< page). Part II: Philosophy of the Life Instinct

Book: Philosophy of Life Instinct: Chapter 20: Government

Can we get it right?

Freedom needs management. The cells and bodies of life forms have evolved to govern themselves with rules and controls. Humans have the most collective power among known life forms due to their intelligence and cooperation. But we need to manage ourselves deliberately for two main reasons:

• We are prone to misusing our abilities, individually and collectively.
• Our activities are so large and complex that we can only sustain them through systematic control.

The management of our large ecosystems, i.e. their governance, allows our collective activities to grow more accomplished but complex, needing increasingly intricate rules and controls. This cycle continues today, driving increasingly sophisticated administration of expanding human activity, especially in finance, industry, law, healthcare, trade, and science.

We will consider the origins, forms, ambit, ethical foundations, and comparisons of Governments and the best form of government we may have.

The origins of government

Like marriage and education, systematic governance is one of our inventions of necessity. Over millennia, it has grown as imposed or consensual rules in the family, village, town, city, state, country, and continent to the global level with the United Nations Organization.

We know the earliest forms of large-scale government from the Mesopotamian, Egyptian, and Indus Valley civilisations. In historical periods, China, Greece, Rome, and Japan established well developed and stable governments. We could surmise that one of the reasons they flourished, grew so large, and lasted so long is due to their inventions in self-governance. (See bibliography).

Forms of government

There have been various formulations of government over the centuries. Some were tightly bound up with religion or armies, and others with hereditary monarchies. There were combinations of all these too. The religion-based ones came about because most faiths gave us rules for social cohesion, which extended to managing temporal matters.

As production and financial activity increased, they boosted our quality of life while growing social dependencies. It became necessary to create economic systems. Ultimately it led to the formal systems of Capitalism, Marxism, Communism, etc.

The government of a state is usually a combination of who governs and the socio-economic basis they apply. Let us have a brief look at the most common types.

Who governs

Multi-party representational democracy

There are many forms of democracy. Those in which adult citizens elect representatives by a majority to form the government are most practical and prevalent. A country managed through public power is called a republic. It is (or should be) based on the following principles:

1. Ultimate power rests with the citizens and flows upwards to their representatives. All citizens have an equal vote.
2. The foundations of law and justice rest on the rights of all individuals to life, representation, equality and freedom of speech, information, assembly, association, movement, opportunity and other human needs.
3. A constitution provides ethical guidelines, limits the majority and protects the minority.
4. The government’s powers and term of office are limited, and a political system is used for their replacement or continuation.
5. There is a system of checks and balances through the separation of powers between lawmaking, executive and justice branches.
6. The constitution, system of government, politics and elections evolve with the times, based on scientific and ethical considerations.

Single-party government

It is a state where only one political party can form the government legally or de facto. China, Cuba, North Korea and Vietnam are examples of one-party states. The success of this form of government has been mixed, depending on the economic policy followed. It certainly goes hand in hand with significant restrictions on individual freedoms, especially expression, association and movement.

Aristocracy and Monarchy

Here the government is in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class. It may be royalty, with a hereditary monarch as head of state, or an elite class separate from the ordinary citizens and workers. This form of government has had a long history and has been usually successful when the monarch or ruler has not been a tyrant. It has provided stability, unity, safety, security and an environment of freedom for most life activities, except for dissent against the rulers.

Theocracy (religious government)

Humanity developed religion to regulate its behaviour for better outcomes, based on the premise that we have Free Will and can be good or commit sins. Religions went on to define good and evil, right and wrong. Most did not leave it to God and our minds to manage ourselves but set rules and meted out rewards and punishments. Even where ostensibly secular governments arise, religious institutions inevitably overlapped with them.

The happy coexistence of a religious system and a civil government has been rare. It is because the focus of religion is individual and social morality and spirituality. It cannot deal with the many concerns of the large, complex and widespread activities humanity has developed. Till we lived in small settlements with pastoral life and limited trade and movement, religion worked with feudalism as a primary form of government. Once we grew to a population of tens of millions in interconnected city-states and nations, complexities abounded in public services, taxation, currencies, prices, wages, trade, commerce, defence, education, etc. Religion was not broad enough to cover these engines of our lives.

But it did not give up in several forms and areas of the world. Native American, Egyptian, Christian, and Islamic religious institutions were ambitious and determined enough to regulate every area of human activity, usually with unhappy results.

Several theocracies existed worldwide until about two hundred years ago, when most began changing to secular governments. But the influence of religious institutions receded gradually.

We have only recently achieved the maturity in most places to leave religion where it is best — the realm of personal salvation, morality (some being questionable), and spirituality. All world areas have not yet achieved secular, non-religious government, even in the early part of the twenty-first century, but we should be getting there soon.

Current examples of theocracies or religiously governed countries are Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Several monarchies in the Middle East allow significant religious influence on laws and policies.

Military government

Throughout history, human communities of every size have armed and trained members to defend themselves or attack each other. These militias and armies have naturally used their power and discipline to control the general affairs of the settlement, city or state. The glorification of war and militarism has characterised military rule. Coups are a standard feature. Most such regimes have not turned out economically prosperous or socially happy.

Sparta and Greece are historical examples of military rule. In more recent times, Britain, France and Greece have had periods of military rule. Modern examples are several countries in South America, Africa, Pakistan, Myanmar and China where the army significantly controlled the government until recently or still does. They were or are effectively run by their military juntas. In some cases, there’s been a veneer of civil government, which fools no one.

Dictatorship

A dictatorship is a form of totalitarian rule with a single leader or junta, intolerant of dissent, most personal freedoms and political pluralism. The dictator becomes identified with the state and government. Dictators can rise from ordinary people, the military, a ruling class or the monarchy. It has never gone well, either for the citizens, neighbouring countries, or both. The prime examples of dictators are Attila, Genghis Khan, Timur, Queen Mary I, Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mao Tse Tung, and Idi Amin.

Basis of governance

The principles on which any governing body above create laws for their country are either economic or based on ideas of national interest.

Capitalism

Capitalism is an economic system in which production is owned by private individuals or entities rather than by the government or cooperative societies. It is characterised by the use of money and other financial assets, profit, paid labour, a competitive free market, voluntary exchange, prices determined by demand and supply, and property rights. It is the predominant economic system globally and has succeeded in creating most of our wealth and well-being.

Socialism

As an economic philosophy, socialism is the ownership of the means of production by society rather than private individuals or entities.

It has two forms — non-market and market socialism. The former is based on central planning and avoiding capital accumulation and profit. It uses mathematical models to control demand and supply and allocate scarce resources, rather than letting market forces decide these aspects. Although Marxism and Communism tried to adopt these non-market practices in the Soviet Union and its satellites in Eastern Europe and elsewhere, they reverted to something like state-managed capitalism, with the government effectively owning the means of production.

Market Socialism is an economic system that aims to achieve social justice and egalitarianism through governmental intervention in an otherwise predominantly capitalistic and free-market economy. It is also known as Social Democracy, and several Western and Northern European countries and the British Commonwealth are based on it.

Communism

Over time, forms of government not aligned to our natural character have performed poorly, and some of them have died out or are close to vanishing. One of the examples is communism. It is a form of socialism that, in its economic aspect, is based on common ownership of the means of production and the elimination of social classes, money and the state itself. It is based on the idea that capitalism inevitably creates two classes — capitalists and the working class, with the former exploiting the latter, which we must prevent. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels developed this social-economic philosophy. The Soviet Union was founded ostensibly on Marxist communism and its variants, Leninism and Stalinism. But they did not or could not implement the idea successfully. Cuba, North Korea and Vietnam also attempted to follow communism and have been dismal economic failures. China is another example of an abortive attempt at communism. (Economically prosperous China after Mao is neither communist nor non-market socialist. It is a combination of state-managed and private capitalism.)

The Life Instinct (see chapter 4) shows us that we, humans, have not evolved to the state of selflessness and cooperation for communism’s idealistic social and economic ideas to succeed. We are innately selfish and do our best for ourselves and those closest to us. Our competitive spirit sustains the vitality of the species and has rapidly increased its capabilities. Communism is an idea whose time may not come until we change at a fundamental level. That may take millions of years or never happen, as it may be antithetical to the Life Instinct itself. We will probably always have a self-centred and grasping nature as a fundamental trait, whether human or a mouse.

Fascism & Nationalism

A nation is a community of people formed based on a common language, history, ethnicity, or shared culture and, in many cases, shared territory. Nationalism is the idea that the interests of such a nation of people should become the same as that of the geographical area where it is the majority.

Ultranationlism is extreme love and devotion to a nation of people accompanied by hatred and disdain for other nations. It ends up supporting totalitarian and authoritarian political systems that put the nation's interests above all else.

Fascism is a form of ultranationalism with a charismatic dictator, a cult-like party, and identification of both with the nation. Violent suppression of opposition and rigid control of society and the economy is characteristic of it. The prime examples of fascist periods are Germany from 1933 to 1945 and Italy from 1922 to 1943. It is one of the worst forms of government our species has delivered itself and tolerated.

Ambit of government

Government should, in principle, cover every activity and concern of humans because all of them are open to disuse, misuse and excess. In many cases, a government may decide not to control something, but it should have the right to make deliberate decisions about every aspect. It will best benefit individuals, humanity as a whole, and the world in which we live.

There are many areas of human concern. Here are the ones which the government usually covers.

1. Constitution
2. Citizenship
3. Fundamental Rights
4. Branches of government and their powers — legislature, executive, judiciary
5. Finance
6. Education
7. Healthcare
8. Environment
9. Defence
10. Policing
11. Affirmative action
12. Trade
13. Internal Relations
14. International Relations

Ethical foundations of government

What should be the guiding principles for the constitution and laws of a state?

Let’s consider this from the context of the Life Instinct (see chapter 4) for individuals and society.

For individuals: Our Life Instinct gives us an innate urge to preserve and enhance our life, that of our children, spouse, extended family, friends, community, race, nation, and so on. The order of our valuation varies between us. The choices we make in life decide the whole species' evolutionary trajectory, but they are made fundamentally at an individual level. We should not overly subvert or control this as we are not wiser than natural selection. We must let individuals decide what they think is good and right where the choice is theirs to make. It gets enshrined in wise constitutions as the freedom of individuals to act according to their instincts, moral beliefs and thinking, as long as they don’t harm others.

For society: But we are also a social life form. We consider matters together, argue and convince each other to determine mutually and jointly what will make us all happier, wealthier, and healthier. These are our ethical beliefs. Its scope can be the family, village, city, country, or the world. The concerns, observations, forces, and conclusions may differ at each level, but the goal is to maximise the benefits for the whole lot — the best for the most.

We can lay the foundation of national constitutions and laws from two viewpoints with these features in mind.

1. The choice between individual good and collective good

• Individuals can make choices for individual or collective good. (E.g., a citizen in a private boat running out of fuel can choose to save a flood-marooned child and let twenty other people at the same distance get swept away.)
• A state must make choices for the collective good. (E.g. soldiers in a rescue boat running out of fuel must choose to save twenty flood-marooned people and let a child at the same distance get swept away.)

2. The choice between morality and ethics

• Individuals can make choices based on their moral beliefs, as long as they don’t conflict with the state’s laws. (E.g., a person can choose not to attend a gay wedding but cannot harm gay people.)
• A state can only make choices (laws) based on ethics, and they can run counter to individual morality. (E.g., the state must legalise gay marriage as it increases the net well-being of society, even if some citizens find it morally unacceptable.)

Based on these principles, we can lay down ethical guidelines for each area of government.

1. Constitution

• A constitution based on humanity's highest, holistic and futuristic liberal wisdom shall be the final authority for laws and justice.
• The constitution will ensure the rights to freedom and equality of individuals, minorities, and the disadvantaged. It will prevent mob rule.
• Any political party shall be allowed based on ideologies that do not conflict with the constitutional principles of equality, freedom, and fraternity. (Examples of parties that shall be allowed are those based on economic principles such as communism, laissez-faire, socialism, etc., as they could benefit society). Examples of parties that shall not be allowed are those based on race, religion, class, anti-immigrant, anti-other-nation, pro-military, etc., as they curtail freedom, equality and fraternity.)

2. Citizenship

• Anyone born in the country or who has lived in it for long or has at least one citizen parent shall be considered a citizen.
• A person shall not lose citizenship of a country merely by taking up the citizenship of another.

3. Fundamental Rights

• Every citizen shall have the right to liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith, worship, peaceful assembly, association, movement, residence, property ownership, and settlement throughout the country.
• Every citizen shall have equality of status and opportunity irrespective of any personal or social characteristic, ability or disability.
• Citizens shall have the right to education, life, work, and remedy through the judiciary and constitution.
• Any adult citizen can stand for election to any post.

4. Branches of government with separate powers

Legislature

• The legislature shall abide by the country’s constitution and make new laws or amend existing ones as required.
• The powers and responsibilities of the legislature shall be separate from those of the judiciary.
• The legislature can encompass the executive function but make it accountable.

Executive

• The executive branch shall enforce legislation (parliamentary law) and strictly carry out governance and administration following the constitution and legislative intent.
• The executive branch can be a part of the legislature but shall be accountable to parliament in interpreting laws, policy formulation, and implementation.
• The executive branch shall have the right to issue subsidiary laws that elaborate legislation for practical use. If challenged, these shall be reviewed by parliament or ultimately by the judiciary.

Judiciary

• The powers and responsibilities of the judiciary shall be separate and independent of the legislature and executive.
• It shall generally restrict itself to interpreting the constitution and laws.
• The judiciary shall move with the times and maintain its vitality. Where the constitution or laws are unclear, incomplete or contrary to principles of natural justice, it shall have the ultimate right and responsibility to decide what is ethical and just.
• The independence of the judiciary shall be ensured through the constitution and the executive branch, including consequences for Contempt of Court, and stringent requirements for the impeachment of judges, requiring all branches of government to agree.
• Judges shall not be above the law.

5. Finance

• The government shall use the best possible experts for financial policy creation, planning, and management, covering taxation, government spending, currency management, liquidity, interest rates, deficits, exchange rates, and other aspects of the economy.
• The guidelines of capitalist economics, including the deprecation of price controls, subsidies, and high taxes, shall be applied (with mitigation of harmful effects) as they deliver financial well-being fastest to most of the population. (See this book and similar studies.)

6. Education

• Education shall be based on science, rationality, and the constitution and not misused for ideological or political purposes.
• Education should encourage independent and enlightened thinking.
• Education shall evolve with the practical needs of society.

7. Healthcare

• The government shall provide primary healthcare to all citizens and permanent residents.
• Beyond that, the quality of healthcare can be as per private financial capacity.

8. Environment

• The government shall protect the environment from degradation due to population overload and human activity.
• The country will participate in international bodies and programmes to protect and balance the planetary ecosystem for all life forms.

9. Defence

• All national defence forces shall be professional services under the control of the civilian central government.
• The defence forces shall not be used against citizens or allowed to commit war crimes.
• There will be no forced conscription except in dire circumstances where external forces threaten the entire nation.

10. Policing

• The police shall discharge its duties without favour or fear.
• The police forces shall be educated on humanities, ethics, and psychology and maintain order humanely.

11. Affirmative action

• Affirmative action shall be allowed to redress historical deficits while not creating new inequities.
• Affirmative action shall not disadvantage meritorious performers in higher education, jobs or other opportunities.
• The period of affirmative action shall be determined analytically and not be indefinite.

12. Trade

• Trade of all valuable goods and services shall be encouraged to the utmost internally and externally with as few barriers and imbalances as possible.
• Trade shall be conducted without collusion, monopoly, cartelisation or other unfair practices.

13. Internal Relations

• The central government, federation, or union shall govern foreign affairs, defence, finance, economy, banking, currency, federal duties, taxes, communication, national infrastructure, etc.
• The states shall govern aspects within their territory such as public order, policing, industry, commerce, public health and sanitation, agriculture, fisheries, irrigation, education, state taxes, duties, etc.
• The union and states shall jointly govern certain aspects such as education, nature, trade unions, marriage, adoption, and succession.
• The states and their divisions shall co-exist respectfully and peacefully, settling disputes through respective central bodies and the judiciary.
• The states and their divisions shall treat all citizens equally and impose no barriers on their movement, residence, culture, language, and access to services, education, jobs, and other opportunities.

14. International Relations

• The country shall co-exist respectfully and peacefully with others, settling disputes through international bodies and the judiciary.
• The country shall participate in international organisations that benefit humanity and the planet, including all other life forms and ecosystems.
• Only international bodies shall sanction intervention in the internal affairs of a country or regime change based on strict criteria — evident genocide, a clear appeal by a recognised alternative representative government, ongoing unethical harm to other countries, or proven imminent danger from a rogue state. Any intervention and transformative action shall be multi-lateral and with exit criteria.

Comparison of reasonable forms of government

Government is not the answer to everything. A lot depends on the people of a country. We are all equal but not the same. We get the leaders and governments we deserve. Humanity is far from a perfect form of life. We progress, we make mistakes, blunder along, recover and carry on. But a good government can make a big difference. How do the systems we have developed compare?

Democracy promises personal happiness and control over our own lives. Capitalism delivers rapid growth of wealth. They seem to be the fairest and most sensible way of governing ourselves. But these inventions do have flaws.

Drawbacks of democracy

1. Voters are unskilled in economics and governance: Most citizens are not experts in analysing what is best for society and ourselves. What we choose en masse is not necessarily any better. Our representatives are likely to be equally ignorant and make poor policy decisions. This problem increases with the complexity of human activity.
2. The rich and powerful have an unfair advantage: Maintaining political parties and campaigning are expensive. Forming alliances and attracting suitable candidates leverages influence, power structures, and promises. Inevitably, those who succeed have an advantage and cling to power. It constrains new ideas, attitudes, and faithful representation of the people and changing needs of society.
3. Our representatives may not represent us: There are three reasons this can happen — if less than 70% of the electorate vote and the winner gets less than 70% of the vote, the majority of citizens have not chosen the winner; even where voting is compulsory, the people attaining office may have different circumstances, needs, and beliefs from most of those who elected them; politicians may have lied, spread disinformation or used conspiracy theories to win.
4. Social divisions are created: By its very nature, multi-party democracy needs ideological differences and disagreements between political parties. Inevitably, when the parties and their leaders try to convince a majority to vote for their views and plans, it makes the citizens fall into camps. Often, the outcome is anger, hatred, bigotry, and discrimination.
5. Expediency trumps reform: Those in power make decisions and promises that are often not the best for most or some minority to remain popular.
6. Planning is short-term, and change can be slow: Major national reforms take several years and could be abandoned, reversed, or shelved if the government changes hands. The incumbent party may not even begin a change to prevent an opposition party from benefiting from progress if it wins next. In systems requiring bipartisan support for bills, deadlock can become common.

Shortcomings of free-market capitalism

Some of the negative aspects of free-market capitalism are listed below. They may not all be outcomes of the system, but they are its intrinsic aspects.

1. Wealth inequality — Wealth accumulates disproportionately in a small percentage of the population. Inheritance within families exacerbates this, as do returns on investing the wealth. Money makes money.
2. Monopoly — There is a natural drive in businesses to monopolise the market and drive up profits. It can put consumers at a severe disadvantage on the price and quality of goods and services.
3. Market bubbles and crashes — Capitalism utilises share, bond, and money markets which can see ups and downs based on sentiment rather than fundamentals. We see a cyclic pattern has with market bubbles and crashes. The latter has real effects and can close businesses, cause widespread job losses and recessions.
4. Unfair remuneration — Barriers to employment mobility for workers and control on factors of production by business owners can allow them to pay unfairly low wages and dispense less of the profit to workers.
5. Environmental degradation — The relentless drive to increase sales creates over-production and over-consumption. The increased use of raw materials and energy, and the generation of rejects and waste, cause massive land, air, and water pollution, loss of forest cover, droughts, floods, habitat loss, global warming, and extinction of species.
6. Materialism — Capitalism thrives on the growing consumption of goods, services, and recreation. Much of the consumption is unnecessary for a healthy, happy and productive life, but we become addicted to this materialistic lifestyle. It causes physical and mental health issues and massive ecological damage.

Given all this, let’s consider some reasonable alternatives to democracy. (We will not consider alternatives to capitalism as there are no good ones. But we will see later how to address its shortcomings.)

Arguments in favour of non-democratic forms of government

Other forms of government than democracy also seem to deliver material well-being and contentment, perhaps without every personal freedom. These are mainly oligarchies, i.e., rule by a few people who are either not democratically elected or elected out of politically non-pluralistic choices. The rulers could come to power due to nobility, fame, wealth, education, corporate power, religious power, politics, or military control. The government systems can be benevolent monarchies, enlightened single-party states, meritocracies, or benign dictatorships.

What explains the known success of several instances of this type? Are we not evolved enough to decide together what is best for us? Could it be that we are still childlike and incapable of handling total freedom? Is democracy too idealistic, like communism, but in a different way?

If any of these limitations exist, perhaps authoritarian governments play the part of religion or family control systems. They may rule with a firm and sure hand and provide a sense of order and protection from the responsibility of making choices in everything, which can be uncomfortable and burdensome.

A country may be fortunate enough to have a professional single-party government, benign monarch or dictator genuinely concerned about the well-being of the citizens and peaceful relations with other countries. Using absolute power and reliable tenure, the ruler, queen, king or dictator may rapidly transform the nation and raise its people’s living standards. They may also make society more egalitarian and united. In such situations, the citizens may be willing to sacrifice some freedom for the security, stability, and prosperity they get. They may be willing to follow laws laid down by a few and tolerated by most people around them.

As long as the citizens of such countries accept and are content with their system of government, should we let them be and not argue for or try to influence them towards democracy?

Indeed, that must be the policy, for this is also a form of freedom — the freedom to choose something less than ideal, even when we know the ideal in theory. As long as the United Nations does not declare a state as rogue and harmful to others, there is no ethical basis to interfere with its government.

The best form of a national government

The need to stay with some form of democracy and free-market capitalism

Hereditary monarchies are a hit-and-miss game and seriously outdated in the modern world.

Benevolent dictators — where do we find them? And we certainly can’t wait for them to find us.

Meritocracy, or government by talented and accomplished individuals, is good in specialised areas of government. But it is not easy to evaluate merit. And in socio-economic terms, it is fundamentally a form of inequality as everyone does not have access to the same level of education and experience. We all have the right to be ordinary, even mediocre, yet have the right to life, well-being, and happiness.

As for single-party states, how long before they become dictatorships, with all the attendant dangers.

So, while some of the alternative systems look attractive, let’s consider democracy and free-market capitalism once again from the viewpoint of the Life Instinct.

1. Democracy and free markets use our intelligence best

A strong argument for democracy, private ownership, and profit is that all our intelligence, diverse opinions, and plans can emerge freely in it. This effusion of thought allows all the messy creativity that is good for life’s progress.

2. Democracy and free markets leverage our initiative to the maximum

We have the innate drive of self-interest in every aspect of life. But in doing the best for ourselves, we improve lives for everyone. This self-centredness needs freedom of various sorts that democracy and free-market capitalism provide.

3. Democracy and free markets provide predictability, stability, and scientific management.

Having a constitution, defined branches of government, separation of powers, limited terms, and elections provides stable self-management.

Ultimately, freedom of choice and working for ourselves are in accord with our nature. It is why, even with its limitations, democracy is and has proven to be the best system of government for humans. It has spread across the world and continues to replace other forms of government.

Humanity has tried out several variations of democracy and capitalism. Let us lay down what could be the best form of their combination. We will call it the Naturalist Socialist Free-Market Democracy.

The best government: Naturalist Socialist Free-market Democracy

Based on the characteristics of humanity, here is what will work best for us in the long term. It is an evolved form of republican, representative democracy. Something like it exists in Western and Northern Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, with the common name Social Democracy or Welfare State (See bibliography.)

Here is the reason for each part of the name.

Naturalist — This focuses the party and government on two necessities that will be crucial forever: 1. Preserve nature on the planet as it sustains all life 2. Take human nature into account in shaping government policies, laws and justice.

Socialist — We will use this term to mean the striving for egalitarianism, social welfare, and social justice. Social welfare will include universal access to education, healthcare, and jobs. Social justice will consist of everyone getting their dues from society as per their contribution, safety nets for those who need it and removing barriers to upward social mobility.

Free-market — Free-market capitalism is in tune with selfish human nature and is the most effective way of creating wealth and well-being for humanity. No other economic system comes close to it for productivity, self-sustenance, and stability.

Democracy — It allows us self-determination of our destiny and satisfies our urge to be free and not be controlled by others. It utilises the best of all of us.

Addressing the shortcomings of democracy

A Naturalist Socialist Free-Market Democracy (NSFD) government will ensure it reduces the shortcomings of democracy significantly.

1. The fundamental principles of democracy apply: Power will flow up from the people, every citizen will have one equal vote, a constitution will guarantee freedom and equality, and a separation of powers between the legislature, executive, and judiciary.
2. Competent government: Those who stand for ministerial office will need to have a Bachelor’s degree or higher and an education that includes science, philosophy, ethics, sociology, and economics. So that voters choose more wisely, the common minimum program of all political parties shall by law include universal secondary education.
3. Equal opportunity for all parties and candidates: The Election Commission shall provide all political parties and candidates with equal funds from taxes for campaigning. Having significantly more money will not by itself enable any party or person to come to power. In tandem, the Election Commission shall strictly prevent buying votes with handouts of cash or kind.
4. Compulsory Voting: Exercising our franchise shall be mandatory, with fines for abstaining. The extent of voting and margin of win must result in a clear majority franchise.
5. Unity over division: All political parties shall be required to have a common minimum program based on the same fundamental beliefs and principles, faithful to the constitution. A period of national service shall be required for all adult citizens when they turn 18 or return to the country from foreign residence. Affirmative action shall be based purely on economic criteria and be time-bound, to prevent feelings of injustice in those ineligible for it.
6. Long-term progress: If the government changes hands between political parties, the new government will carry on incomplete strategic programs or make a scientific case before an independent authority for terminating or modifying them. The primary responsibility of the government will be policymaking, planning, and execution. Lawmaking will be secondary as most countries now have well-established and standardised laws in place (or available for adoption). These don’t require much change until humanity evolves to a significantly different condition. All political parties and the government shall be required by law to restore and preserve the planet's ecosystem.
7. Avoiding anarchy: Even with a good constitution and checks and balances, there is the possibility that mob rule and extremist leaders can take over democracy and extremist leaders and become anarchy. Here are three ways we will avoid this.

• The first is the rule of law. The government will make citizens follow the constitution and laws diligently by making the police and judiciary independent, fast and effective.
• The second is education. Scientific education is the key to intellectual and emotional maturity and a potent enabler of democracy. It is the capacity to gather information and combine it with interest, curiosity, and thought to understand ourselves, society, and the world. We then appreciate the need to work together, respect differences, quality and efficiency, and behave better. It becomes a virtuous circle. The government will achieve 100% secondary education and at least 25% college education.
• The third is self-control. Self-awareness, emotional intelligence, psychology, philosophy, and ethics will be taught in high school and college, and time set aside for it at work.

Addressing the shortcomings of capitalism

A Naturalist Socialist Free-Market Democracy (NSFD) government will control the excesses of free-market capitalism in these five ways.

1. Reduce wealth inequality: This can be achieved through these interventions by an NSFD government: 1. Mandate Worker and government participation in corporate policy, 2. Invest in primary and secondary education and vocational training, 3. Invest in childcare, internet access, transport, and other infrastructure to increase access to work, 4. Set a minimum living wage and top up the income of low and middle-income earners. 5. Impose adequate inheritance tax, wealth tax, and corporate regulation.
2. Prevent monopoly: The ways to achieve this are well known, and the NSFD government will apply them: 1. Cap prices, 2. Regulate mergers and acquisitions, 3. Break up monopolies, cartels, and predatory pricing, 4. Have government ownership of limited essential services, 5. Promote competition.
3. Prevent market bubbles and crashes: An NSFD government shall: 1. Employ expert economists, mathematicians, and technologists to predict and detect bubbles and crashes, 2. Use the central bank, a Securities and Exchange Commission, and monetary policy to manage interest rates, liquidity, etc., to prevent runaway inflation and stagnation, 3. Monitor trading activity in real-time and regulate the financial industry to ensure transparency of instruments, prevent fraud, use circuit-breakers to prevent herd buying and selling, etc.
4. Ensure fair wages: An NSFD government shall ensure fair wages for labour and will 1. Mandate worker and government participation in corporate policy, 2. Regulate wages through a wage board based on the principles of — equal pay for equal work without discrimination and irrespective of nature of the contract, transparency of total compensation, minimum wage schedules by class of work. (Higher skills, experience, and effort will be paid more.)
5. Restore and preserve the environment: An NSFD government shall care for the national and global environment and will 1. Be an integral part of international ecological and climate bodies, 2. Set limits on greenhouse gas emission, 3. Set aside half the land as protected areas free of human activity (except for restoration and conservation work) 4. Conduct a national survey on ecological impact and creating a plan for restoration, biodiversity and long-term preservation.
6. Reduce materialism: An NFSD government shall create a balance between material wealth, social responsibility, and mental well-being and will 1. Include mandatory school courses on humanities, social responsibility, self-awareness, ethics, and philosophy, 2. Mandate national or international service for people in need and the environment for at least one year.

Ideal International Government

There is a long way to go (assuming we can even get there) before we can do away with the division of the world into countries. Meanwhile, we can only hope that Naturalist Socialist Free-Market Democracy spreads to most of the 195 countries. It will naturally align their governments and people and make co-operation easier.

We must support and increase the effectiveness of the United Nations, the International Court of Justice, the World Trade Organization, the World Wide Fund for Nature, the World Health Organization, the International Organization for Migration, and many other institutions that represent the highest wisdom of humanity.

Conclusions

We are not a simple life form. Getting the best out of our interdependency and cooperation needs analysis, planning, and control. It also needs empathy and wisdom.

To find the best form of government has been a goal of philosophy for thousands of years. It is just as alive and crucial a subject today and will be for a long time to come. As stakeholders of good government, we need to care about it and support its continuous improvement wherever we can.

© 2020 Shashidhar Sastry. All rights reserved.

(As each chapter of the book is published, its link is updated in the ToC below.)

Table of Contents

Part I Metaphysics of The Life Instinct

Part II Philosophy of The Life Instinct

Part III The Life Instinct and The Future

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