Does Society Have Too Many Rules?

4 Caiero 3 9/11/2025, 3:13:24 AM newyorker.com ↗

Comments (3)

thelastgallon · 4h ago
01. Wife rules (and wives rules, in cultures that support multiple), arbitrary, extensive, punitive.

02. HOA rules, not as extensive as #1, but still you are always doing something wrong. It could be fines for grass in the lawn 1.6mm higher, or drying clothes or growing the wrong kind of plants. You may have to demolish and rebuild the entire roof if you didn't pay attention to exact shade of color.

03. City and County rules.

04. State rules.

05. Federal rules.

06. International rules. But most people are not in diplomatic positions.

07. Interplanetary rules. Unfortunately, we are left out of these because we are thinking meat and nobody wants to acknowledge us. [1]

#5 takes 30 - 50% of your money (ss, medicare, futa, income) and you don't get any benefit out of it, #3 and #4 take 10 - 15% and you get public schools and school buses (in some places), #2 takes odd quantities of money like a pickpocket, #1 takes all your money and you are always doing something wrong. There are no more revolutions because men are exhausted after #1 and #2. #3 - #5 mostly want your money and let you live in peace (as long as you keep paying them).

[1]They're Made out of Meat: https://www.mit.edu/people/dpolicar/writing/prose/text/think...

3np · 6h ago
I guess you can (soon) go live in a Thiel enclave of your choice and find out.
spectraldrift · 5h ago
It fully depends on whether those rules or laws actually mean anything.