Logarchism

Logarchism is a political philosophy that advocates for reason, logic and intellectualism in power structures. Logarchism can be structured within democracy, though another popular understanding of Logarchism rejects democracy in exchange for a fully Logarchic society.

Logarchism does not offer a specific worldview, but rather a method of determining a party worldview, and thus, minor Logarchic institutions the world over have very differing views of what should be prioritized in government. The two major traditions of Logarchism, while mutually exclusive in terms of how to govern, have a great deal of overlapping potential, thanks to the methods espoused by Logarchists.

Etymology
The term logarchism is a compound word comprised of the word "logarchy" and the suffix "-ism", themselves derived from the Kalopian words λόγος (logos, meaning "word" or "reason") and ἀρχός (archos, meaning "leader" or "ruler"), and the suffix -ισμός or -ισμα (-ismos, -isma, from the verbal infinitive suffix -ίζειν, -izein). The term therefore means approximately "rational ruler".

The first recorded use of the term was in the Hobrazian university newspaper Kartsel, referring to the almost militaristic intellectualism engaged in by the first logarchists. The term quickly spread, and the Logarchic Philosophical Union in Hobrazia, headed by Reziko Teimuraz, was the first party organisation to use the term as a descriptor in 3996.

History
Logarchism has its roots in the teachings of the Ancient Kalopian political philosopher Piletus. Piletus, himself a notable apprentice of Sokriatos, another philosopher, had a great distrust in democracy, labeling it as a failed oligarchy, where freedom was placed paramount, but was also a prison. He reasoned that it allowed the lower classes to flourish and do as they pleased. Democracy inevitably degenerated to Anarchy, and then to Tyranny as those longing for freedom place themselves in positions of power. In Piletus' view, the ideal state is a form of aristocracy, which would be one strictly defined by class values, whereby those with a predisposition to rule and the philosophical backing to do so would be placed into positions of power, as 'philosopher-kings', those with a predisposition to fight would be placed into the military, and all of the rest world work for the greater good of the country by farming and being used for their labor. The aristocracy was a central theme in Piletus' "The Republic", outlining his philosophy towards power and democracy.

It was not until the mid-3900s when philosophers began to critically analyse Piletus' works for their value in the modern world. One of the first to do so was the Hobrazian professor Bedros Parsamyan, whose works on Classical Kalopia were known throughout the world. His most famous work, entitled Discourse on the Philosopher-King, was considered an early Logarchist work, and explored both how Plato envisioned his idea of a Philosopher-King and how it might translate into the modern world of democracy. Parsamyan himself did not describe himself as following the views embodied in his work, but many modern-Logarchists have taken to using them in debates nevertheless.

Hobrazia's development of Logarchism continued. University Professor Reziko Teimuraz began a lot of the pushing to form a large base of Logarchist thought. In 3996, the Logarchic Philosophical Union was formed. Despite receiving very few votes early on, the LPU later won the elections in February 4006, leading to them forming a majority government. With the later resignation of the two smaller parties, they won all-out control of the government. However, a major series of revolts in Hobrazia caused the Conservative Union Party, a successor to the Conservative Party of Hobrazia, to regain power.

The loss of power in Hobrazia deeply troubled Logarchists worldwide, especially in the newly-formed but growing Logarchist communities in Selucia. This caused divisions between the factions known as the Excogitantur, who supported democratic methods of introducing Logarchism, and the Sanctus Logarchus, whose philosophy more closely resembled Piletus' early works, as they disregarded democracy as a valid system entirely.

In 4154, the next Logarchist party, Cogitari was formed in Selucia.

Logarchist Schools of Thought
There are two main Logarchist schools of thought, which developed after the breakup of the Logarchic Philosophical Union. While Logarchism is an ideology, it must be remembered that their outlooks are not necessarily binding and worldview-oriented, but rather based on forming one's worldview.

Excogitantur
Excogitantur, or Thinker Logarchists, follow the teachings of philosophers such as Hakob Sarkisian in Hobrazia and Laelius Silvius in Selucia, as well as the original works of Bedros Parsamyan. Their outlook is far more based around democracy.

As with all forms of Logarchism, their ideology is based around the formation of ideas rather than the ideas themselves. However, since Excogitantur Logarchists are much more comfortable with co-operating with democracy and democratic systems, they have a large degree of interest in political discourse and the proposal of laws within democratic systems. As such, they tend to favour increasing availability and quality of education above all, with other issues coming secondary. Excogitantur Logarchists are also known for being vocal supporters of secularization in politics, preferring that religion is not involved in politics in any way.

Given the democracy-accepting ways of Excogitantur Logarchists, they are sometimes also called 'Democratic Logarchists', and are considered more moderate than their counterparts. Their willingness to co-operate with and even participate in democracy have led to most of the major Logarchist movements being Excogitantur.

Sanctus Logarchus
Sanctus Logarchus, or Pure Logarchists, follow much more closely to the teachings of Piletus, as well as focusing a lot around the philosophies of people like Marcellus Florianus and Hercules Tiberius.

Sanctus Logarchus see democracy as a poison, and thus generally refuse to take part in it. To Sanctus Logarchists, the ultimate aim of Logarchism is to form a Logarchic state and society, not to interact within a democratic one. As such, they are seen somewhat as extremists.

While there is division in Sanctus Logarchus circles about whether egalitarianism and equality of opportunity should be pursued in Logarchic states, due to the small numbers of Sanctus Logarchus followers, it is generally considered of little concern.

Relations between the groups
With the founding of both groups, a lot of bitterness has been present between the two circles of Logarchists. However, with the founding of Cogitari in Selucia, the two groups have largely come together and continue to support one another in that regard. Both Excogitantur and Sanctus Logarchus members are represented in the party, with Sanctus Logarchus being in favour of ditching democracy in Selucia in exchange for Logarchic systems of government, and Excogitantur being the major policy-makers and democrats.

Criticisms
Numerous criticisms have been made about Logarchism, largely thanks to its status as a controversial ideology. Logarchism is often evaluated as both too utopian and too dictatorial by its critics, leading to divisions amongst critics also in regards of how to address the ideology.

Moreover, political philosophers and history professors sometimes claim that Logarchism today is very different to how Piletus imagined a perfect Aristocracy. However, many Logarchists simply respond by saying that Piletus' philosophy is the initial framework of Logarchism, but modern philosophies and political thought has changed it either way, and so the original ideas mean very little.