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Comment by JanezStupar | Hacker News Reader

A contract you had no participation in drafting and never signed, yet you are compelled at gunpoint to uphold it.

Nice spin tho.

As a minor, your parents decided for you, but once you're 18 nothing is stopping you from either trying to re-negotiate the contract (i.e. become politically active) or trying to find a better deal (emigrate). You can also decide to simply unilaterally break the contract (become a criminal) and in practice you could even live without such a contract in a variety of vast areas that are largely uninhabited.

You're not being compelled to accept this contract, but it's such a good deal that few people decide otherwise.

You're right that nothing is stopping you from trying to become politically active or to emigrate, but the chances of doing either successfully are very low.

Politics favors people of certain backgrounds and/or very high charisma. The more substantial the change the higher the level of politics you need to get involved in, and the less likely you are to successfully be involved.

Emigration suffers from the problem that the less money and education you have, the more difficult it is to successfully emigrate. You can't just decide you want to move to a country, they need to decide to let you in. The bar for entry in a lot of countries is very high so it's just not an option for a lot of people.

It's 2016, we have Amended the Constitution so the Senate is democratically ellected, we have live video footage of police brutality for when we are abused...and yet the collective constituency of the nation has to pick between two presidential candidates with the lowest approval ratings in theirown parties that anyone has ever seen. Yet, you try and say that social contract theory applies to an individual? When it clearly can't even apply to the masses? This is the 21st century, this is most likely the best moment in human history. This is the worst evidence for social contract theory. Think about it.

We don't have to choose between two options. Some people are more likely to win than others, but that's to be expected.

Yeah, just "become a criminal" and enjoy life in one of our nation's beautiful, gleaming prisons.

This kind of faith in the system is highly disturbing to me.

well if every generation had to write their laws from scratch we'd never get anything done. You have to accept that as someone coming into an already occupied world that some rules will have been made prior to your birth. You can campaign against them but just don't expect not to be challenged if you break them.

Damn law of gravity!

If you are defining law of gravity in terms of "contract" then you are having some issues.

You can't have a society without having any social constructs.

Nice try at Libertarianism tho.

I am not against society or law. I am against as framing law in the manner GP did.

Just like the constitution.

... you can change laws, we have processes for it. You can also move to a more viable environment for your needs.

Indeed. But law is not a contract. Law is law. That is my only point.

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