What would be a good Philosopher to use as support in my debate?

Question

My Resolution statement is " I negate that laws which protect citizens from themselves are not justified"

Its a LD debate.

My resolution statement is " I negate that laws which protect citizens from themselves are not justified"

Its a LD debate

I would like to find a philosopher who talks about people being idiots.

Answer 1

Your question is tricky and misleading, because it uses a double negative. Taking away your double negative, I am assuming that your resolution statement is "laws which protect citizens from themselves are justified.

In this case, you might want to study Thomas Hobbes

Thomas Hobbes argued that people are naturally predatory against each other, therefore a large, organized, central authority is required to keep the people from ripping themselves apart. What he called "the War of all against all"

He was the person who coined the term that people living in a state of nature lived Solitary, Poor, Nasty, Brutish, and Short

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Hobbes

Answer 2

So you're saying that the statement you're defending is that it's OK to have laws protecting people from themselves? (Or at least that such laws are justified?) Wow. As a libertarian, I wouldn't want to defend that one.

As for philosophers who talk about people being idiots, I think most philosophers think that way, even if they don't say it out loud. :-) As for the context of your question--the law--you may want to try some Marx or Engels. To understand the other side of the debate--that men should be free as much as possible--try some Frederick Bastiat, Thomas Paine, and "Socialism" by Ludwig von Mises.

Answer 3

People are not idiots. !!
--------------------------------
They are self contained units acting for their
own purpose, using the full set of life experiences
given to them. How ever broad or narrow this set
of experiences are.

You can never understand anything that you have pre-labeled, The momentum from the labeling is too great.
I recommend you start again at first principles.

Answer 4

Try Hobbes.

Not a lover of human nature.

Answer 5

unless you are from china you cant understand chineese
unless you are from India you cant understand HIndi

My point is... you cant understand me unless you know my language, speaking to those who don't understand your language is absolute stupidity!
language here doesn't mean the literal one..