Whiskey wrote: ↑Mon Sep 22, 2025 3:28 am
honorentheos, fair enough on pulling out the textbook definition, it's solid for what it is. But let's not mix apples with hand grenades here. I'm talking straight-up authority, the kind where folks on both sides of the fence want the feds to step in and call the shots on abortion (or whatever hot-button issue). One side says "make it illegal top-down," the other says "keep it legal top-down." Same mechanism, different flavor.
Government has authority by definition. To govern is to assert authority of some kind in some manner over someone by someone. The history of the west has not been defined by changes in the existence of authority being wielded by government. Rather, what defines a system is what I said earlier. What matters is where the authority comes from, who has the ability to check it, and on what principles it is asserted.
Complaining about government having authority as a general concern is usually an indicator someone didn't like a bigger kid showing up on the playground and laying down the law. You could say that is what others are doing when they complain about Trump's actions and it could be true. But that is exactly why we, in the former-and-maybe-one-day-once-again western liberal democracy known as the United States of America are supposed to give f's about rule of law, institutional procedures, the consent of the governed, and balance of power between branches of government, and limits on power.
So when you say,
You sliding into authoritarianism feels like shifting the posts a bit, 'cause that's a whole regime thing, unchecked power, no accountability, the works.
you are suggesting that our definition of authoritarianism we agree to should include those? Or you are saying including those is shifting the argument? If the former, I think it's in the definition provided but open to see how you'd amend it to better include them. If you think it doesn't apply in discussing the subject here and very much makes a difference between how Nick Fuentes wants to see power and authority used to create a world that benefits a few at the expense of the many compared to claims a system of government can and MUST be able to interfere with individual preferences where those actions violate the principles and laws of the society being governed when those systems are intended to be democratic rather than autocratic.
So, I stand by the claim that is the ball.
https://sociology.plus/glossary/authoritarianism/
Definition:
Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by concentrated power in the hands of a single leader or a small elite, who wield significant control without being constitutionally responsible to the public. In this system, individual freedoms are limited, and political opposition is either suppressed or strictly regulated. Authoritarian regimes typically rely on arbitrary decision-making, lack transparent governance, and have vague or limited legal boundaries governing the use of power.
Authoritarianism stands in contrast to democratic systems, where leaders are elected through fair and competitive processes, and checks and balances exist to regulate the exercise of political power.