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U.S. Supreme Court Issues Landmark Decision: Constitution is Void

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Lyle:
Explain to me why I should've interpreted "Government will always exist" as a claim of possibility instead of a claim of certainty.

I conditioned the statement, when read in context with the entire paragraph in which it is found, on whether mankind continues to see government, albeit constrained, as a necessary evil to check against crime and other governments.  Conditional statements are possibilities.

As far as I can tell, you made no such condition. Here is your original post in full:

Lyle:
Government will always exist.  Even with the best of intentions, the do-gooders will create it and attempt to limit it with a Constitution.  But restraint cannot last beyond the lifespan of the Constitution's authors.  The more diverse a populace becomes in its values, the smaller to no government must prevail. While the intention to create and restrain government (to defend against the unconstrained government of evil men) is honorable, no government (read: market solutions) in one's defense is offered as a viable alternative by Hans Herman-Hoppe and others of the Austrian School. [Emphasis added.]

You didn't put any "whether" in your post, from what I can tell. Therefore I maintain that you were clearly asserting that mankind will continue to see government, albeit constrained, as a necessary evil to check against crime and other governments. Such a statement cannot be made without clairvoyancy, of course, and clairvoyancy doesn't actually exist.

The keyboard is mightier than the gun.

Non parit potestas ipsius auctoritatem.

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Lyle replied on Wed, Feb 2 2011 5:09 PM

I concede defeat.

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