MCLC: divide and rule (2)

[Denton, Kirk]

MCLC LIST
From: sean macdonald <smacdon2005 at gmail.com>
Subject: divide and rule (2)
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This is a very interesting posting. I did not think Sisci's take was
completely negative. And I would merely like to address the comment about
Canada. While it may be true that George III recognized the importance of
separating court systems, his decisions were probably not a little bit
determined by the large influx of British Loyalists after the American
Revolution into what was then a small group of colonies, including what
would become "Lower Canada," the French  territory that had gone to war
and lost against Britain just twenty years earlier, and continued to
function under a separate legal system even until the late 19C century.

Could this "recognition" have been partially due to the possibility of
losing the last British held colonies in North America? Perspective is key
in a concept like "divide and rule." While it may seem cynical, the
exigencies of politics often appear this way. For example, George III
could be seen as cynically handing power over to the colonial courts
because he wanted to maintain what little power and territory he had left.
Whatever the case may be, whether we agree with a politician or not, one
of the most important aspects of rule is simply the maintenance of power.

So divide and rule must at least appear to be in the interest of the
rulers and the ruled. This seems to be the case in the 18C and the 21C.
 

All the best,

Sean