A government of the people, by the people, and for the people must take into account the duel inclinations of human nature. Within each person is the pull of good and evil. When enacting laws to govern a populace, these opposites of human nature must be recognized. It should also be noted that, in a Republic, since we choose men and women to represent us, we must be vigilant in assessing their leaning.
Aristotle told of this duality in the story of the white dog and the black dog.
A man came across another man walking two dogs, each on their own leash. One dog was white and the other black. Both were straining against their ropes in an attempt to be in the lead. The one man asked the dog owner, "Which one wins?" The dog owner answered, "The one I feed the most."
We should continually ask ourselves if our laws encourage the best qualities of human nature and fairly punish the meaner propensities. So too, we should be watching our elected leaders to see which dog is in the lead.
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