The dose makes the poison.
Paracelsus (c)

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Good people of Steemit, I salute you!

The time has come to share some thoughts of mine. Thoughts about authoritarianism and dictatorship. Is it really that bad or are we just brainwashed to think so?

[This is the point where most people tell me that I am crazy, but bear with me for a moment]

Seriously, let’s just think this through. You all know a pragmatic and ruthless guy named Lee Kuan Yew. No? Then you better read up on him, because he’s probably one of the most successful leaders of the recent past.

I mean, look at what he’s done to Singapore in half a century. He transformed this lowly and poor island with no natural resources into a freaking global powerhouse and one of the TOP economies in the world! All it took was an authoritarian regime, a pinch of dictatorship, a strong will to act, and a goal to eradicate all signs of corruption. Yes, officially Singapore is a parliamentary republic, but everyone knows who wears the pants in the house, right?

When I look at people around the world every day, I see degradation. Poor people wishing to steal in order to feed their families. Rich people thinking that money solves everything and thus justifying their atrocious behaviour (and also wishing to steal). Government officials thinking that they’re the god’s envoy, exercising the smallest amount of power they’re given right away (and also wishing to steal). And it all makes me depressed. Because these people are passing this kind of knowledge and behavior models onto their children, who in their turn behave in the exact same atrocious way.

[The inevitability of punishment is the first factor deterrent to corruption, - Lee Kuan Yew]

Today we know better than to grab spiders or snakes. We know to avoid mistletoe, holly or ivy due to their toxicity. We know this because our ancestors told us about it generation after generation, because one of them had some tragic misfortune with those animals or plants ages ago. They were afraid, and fear, being one of the strongest emotions, is very contagious. This knowledge is in our genes now.

I know that the current generation is already past the line and there is no changing it. But imagine if we started publicly executing or putting people in jail for the rest of their lives without the opportunity to buy out. This generation would live in fear of corruption. In time, the people will pass onto their children the same reflex. And the generation after that. And so on, until we get so used to absence of corruption that the dictatorship is no longer necessary.

So, to sum up: dictatorship is a poison, no doubt, but every poison is healthy in small doses. Thus, is it really that bad or could we use it to cure the society?

Let me know in the comments.

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