Rules for Rulers

Recent events in Bangladesh seem right out of Rules for Rulers. You literally have the Keys meeting the prime minister to say that they won't defend the regime from oncoming revolutionaries (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/06/world/asia/bangladesh-hasina-final-hours.html).

Christopher Upchurch

true

Ariana

Like this)

FoxCorp

Great ...

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Medinaz

Joel, don't forget the other small rebellion that happened in the mid 19th century which, incidentally, wasn't so small...

I'm curious now too! My guess is that the American revolution was organized via a many-small-keys system, so the government it produced also ran via many small keys, thus allowing for those benefits of stability. Certainly the many, many organized battalions of soldiers following orders from a military hierarchy stand in stark contrast to the revolutionaries in France just fifteen years later. I also think the transition looks a lot easier from a distance. It took thirteen years before the Constitution was ratified! That is a long time! And I think this video really clarifies why a lot of ideas and systems that sounded good at first eventually didn't stick. In high school I never understood why people didn't like the Articles of Confederation, but now I read the Wikipedia summary a totally different way: "Although [it] made the "league of states as cohesive and strong as any similar sort of republican confederation in history", the chief problem with the new government under the Articles of Confederation was, in the words of George Washington, "no money". The Continental Congress could print money; but, by 1786, the currency was worthless. ... No state paid all their U.S. taxes; Georgia paid nothing, as did New Jersey in 1785. Some few paid an amount equal to interest on the national debt owed to their citizens, but no more." Obviously such a government is COMPLETELY DOOMED.

Lawrence

I'm curious how the American revolution fits in with this framework. After a successful rebellion, shouldn't it have become a midling dictatorship? Instead, it seems to have gone directly from rebellion to stable democracy. I know there were some small rebellions (e.g. Shays rebellion and the Whiskey rebellion) but these remained local and were not joined by any important keys hence why the failed and have become footnotes in history. Are there any lessons here on how to transition from rebellion/coup to stable democracy? Maybe I should just buy the book :P

Joël Quenneville

I was thinking about why Aus had Howard in power for so long and now we have new priministers all the time, with the GFC and mineral price drop, less treasure for the voting blocks. when a tax was suggested for the miners they ran massive ad campaigns against them. I think you're right as automation rolls on it's gonna take away even more power from the working class and that's the boss's way of minimizing his keys. Gotta keep the biggest keys happy i suppose.

jason anderson

Some women have been kings rather than queens. Besides doing gender neutral would have been a real annoyance for this video I imagine.

Korakys

If you didn't that would be bad :D

King Mckay

Game of Thrones makes so much more sense to me now. But in all seriousness, great video! It makes me feel very... uncomfortable, but that's good. Right?

Ian

So what does this mean in an age of automation where a coal mine can be operated without people on site (already a reality in Australia) or where other other traditional essential skilled and unskilled blocks of labour are no longer required? Will technology fundamentally alter our structures of power? Some people will still be needed, but the who may change and the number of keys required.

fincle

Good video, but is the gendered language necessary? I think it would be improved by defaulting to "person" and "ruler" over "man" and "king"

Daniel Haas

Fade away at the end is scary!!

Memming Park

That about sums it up, yeah. 😟

Nathan O'Connor

Great, so even if I'm a president of the Autism Awareness club, I have to play the politics game like the worst dictator/"corrupt" politician? Can't avoid this even if I wanted to.

Del Keyes

Really, really good video. It elegantly explains so many things about politics it is surreal if you just keep taking these 3 rules to their logical conclusion.

Ishayu

I managed to search for "The Dictator's Handbook" on Audible just after Grey mentioned it but *before* he mentioned Audible. Clearly, I'm not the one with the power in this situation :P.

Zach Young

The Dictator's Handbook doesn't seem to be in the Audible library any more. :o(

duffry

@8:20-8:45... ouch. This is incredible. wow. thanks. Now time for a video on oligarchies...

lori dombek

Wow, this will be my whole lunch time. :P

Memming Park

19 minutes. Holy crap!

Josh