Politics > Orientation to Politics

Orientation to Politics

Aristotle believed that we are all political animals, and politics is part of ethics.

Pericles advised in 360 BCE: “Just because you do not take an interest in politics doesn’t mean that politics won’t take an interest in you.

I might wonder about Aristotle, but I immediately warm to Pericles—the warning still rings true more than two thousand years later.

How it looks in 2014:Closed Since writing the above, it has become impossible to avoid politics by maintaining a bare minimum interaction with government. Everyone's movements, private communications and personal data is being actively or potentially accessed by governments. This represents a new era in political life.

Having said that, I found «politics» somewhat mysterious. Why do I find politics distasteful. Why does it intrude into my life? Do I engage in politicking and, if so, why? These questions kick-off the inquiry.

The position taken here is that politics is to society what ethics is to a person: it deals in some way with what is good and right. Notions like «responsibility», «the good of society», «benefit for the populace» should surely be embedded in any understanding of the notion.


I previously experimented with itineraries that guided you through key ideas in the Satellite: either quickly or in more detail. If you would like to have or produce a guide, it could be reinstated. Contact us.

Originally posted: July 2009; Last updated: 26-Feb-2014




All posted material is part of a scientific project and should be regarded as provisional. Visitors are encouraged to think through the topics and propositions for themselves. Copyright © Warren Kinston 2009-2016.
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