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As for historical precedents that this ~~concern~~ thievery is a prerequisite for a peaceful society, the record is mixed . . .

Well, at least you admit that much. Note that it means there is no compelling reason for doing it.

Here's what you said:

. . . there are huge numbers of such people and their wishes and welfare can be discounted only at great risk to a society. Our ideas of justice spring from that realization.

But you can't offer any data to back it up. Yet 'rats insist on the right to take food out of the mouths of a huge number of working class American families. Try showing compassion them for once.

All possessions are hard-earned and hard kept.

Jesus, the crap you say with a straight face.

I benefit from all sorts of public works - paid for to a large extent by taxes; public education, innoculations and other public health measures, municipal water and power . . .

That's not what I'm talking about and you know it. Can you 'rats ever be honest?

You're posting to a political site and claiming you have no interest in power? See a shrink.

Just like a 'rat . . . Here I'm interested in preventing thieves from taking what is mine and you characterize it as a power grab. Conservatives as a whole don't steal from anybody and don't want to steal from anybody. Socialists live to steal so they can buy votes with the spoils. Big difference.

Regarding the ad hominem education crap . . . Mine's perhaps as good as yours, maybe better.

But you can't offer any data to back it up

The Romans thought bread and circuses were a good idea. Nobody since has disputed that. Perhaps you'd like to try?

Jesus, the crap you say with a straight face

Dispute it if you can.

That's not what I'm talking about and you know it

No I don't. Why don't you tell me?

Here I'm interested in preventing thieves from taking what is mine and you characterize it as a power grab

For the purposes of this discussion power can be defined either as the ability to do what you wish or to get others to do what you wish. Politics is certainly about the latter and often about the former.

Conservatives as a whole don't steal from anybody and don't want to steal from anybody

It's all in how one defines these things...and the reality is always different than the theory. Neither conservatives nor liberals condone what is commonly defined as theft. And when they do condone theft they give it another name and legalize it; taxes, tax breaks, socialization, privatisation, etc. etc. etc. Clean hands are hard to find.

Mine's perhaps as good as yours, maybe better.

I don't care about the formal degrees. I judge by what I see posted.