"Visualize... what would happen if a man missed his wallet, concluded that he had been robbed, broke into every house in the neighborhood to search it, and shot the first man who gave him a dirty look, taking the look to be a proof of guilt." (Ayn Rand, "The Nature of Government", Virtue of Selfishness)

Thanks to ABC's popular series, "Lost", the story of a group of plane crash survivors stranded on a remote South Pacific island, you don't have to visualize this scene for yourself. Simply tune in Wednesday nights at eight to watch any one of the survivors charging around the island looking for another survivor to attack in retaliation for some wrong. A dirty look is far more proof than these people need to rile them.

The speed with which the survivors jump to conclusions, become emotionally outraged and respond immediately with violence is astounding. When it occurs (not in every episode, but most) the pattern is the same: a survivor discovers something of his missing or damaged, he immediately thinks of the person he dislikes the most, then he bolts out to find that person and pounds his face.

There is no pause to ponder possible suspects or motives, and no thought whatsoever given to the possibility of error. They don't resort to violence; it's standard procedure. (The only character immune, so far, from this malady, is a former Republican Guard interrogator!) It's no surprise to learn, via flashbacks, that many of the survivors acted the same (and were equally lost) back in civilization.

I can't watch this show without thinking of Ayn Rand's article on government (quoted above), especially this paragraph:

"The use of physical force--even in retaliatory use--cannot be left at the discretion of individual citizens. Peaceful co-existence is impossible if a man lives under the constant threat of force to be unleashed against him by any his neighbors at any moment.

Whether his neighbors' intentions are good or bad, whether their judgment is rational or irrational, whether they are motivated by a sense of justice or by ignorance or by prejudice or by malice--the use of force against one man cannot be left to the arbitrary decision of another."
I don't think the show has much value other than as an illustration of this principle, but it does do this frustratingly well.