Duplicity

 

Duplicity

Peter Schultz

 

                  Duplicity is not a moral problem. It is a political problem. That is, it’s a problem that arises from the character of political life, from the defective character of justice and of political life.

 

                  Justice, in all its forms, is partial, incomplete, less than comprehensive. Just like rule in all its forms. There is no rule of all. Ruling and being ruled in turn is perhaps the best we can do. This means that doing justice always involves doing injustice. Democrats are unjust toward oligarchs, because democratic justice and oligarchic justice are not only different but contentious. Aristocratic justice is injustice vis-à-vis the non-aristocratic; hence, the prevalence of “aristocratic hypocrisy,” and “aristocratic arrogance.” Even in the best regime there is injustice because “the best” is only “as good as it gets.” And if Aristotle was correct, then the best regime not only has but requires slavery. And, of course, there has never been a political order devoid of crime, criminals, and prisons.

 

                  Hence, duplicity arises in order to deal with the injustices that necessarily exist in all political orders. Take note: “in order to deal with” those injustices because they cannot be eliminated. Justice and injustice always appear together. So, duplicity arises in their train and exists to deal with the flawed character of justice, i.e., with the flawed character of political life. So, while eliminating duplicity might seem desirable, to try to do so shows an ignorance of the political and will prove to be futile.