"If men were angels, no government would be necessary."I wonder how many people would agree with Madison on this? It seems to me that many people tend to overlook this idea when they think about government. Many seem to think that the point of government is to make us all better off through the good works that government provides. On the other hand, if you think about government from point of view expressed by Madison, then I think the first, and perhaps most important, thing you think about with respect to government is that government is granted a monopoly in the use of force to protect us from harm by others (those who are not angels).
Perhaps there is another thought suggested by Madison's observation. Since men are not angels, how will men (and women) act if they become elected to government and come to have their own hands on the coercive power of government? Surely politicians and government bureaucrats are not angels as well. And, I think the next question is something like this: If we have government to constrain men who are not angels, how will we constrain the same men when they become members of government and therefore our governors? Surely we don't want to trust them to constrain themselves.
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