[lit-ideas] Re: When a civilized society fights a barbarous one

Judy: I did not intend a return to the previous argument. Your post makes an important point but is not relevant to what I said.


But Judy it is the essence! You state that those who wish to hold the US to a higher standard do so because they believe the US is qualitatively better than its adversaries.

My point is that the higher standard exists to provide a general direction to civilization, just as high ideals provide a general direction to an individual.

High ideals mean regular failure to meet them. Low ideals mean a government will often meet or exceed its claims.

The claim to superiority is based on the ideals--the overall direction--and is not invalidated by day-to-day failures.

If it were otherwise, the society with the lowest ideals would be superior because it always lived up to its ideals.

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