Verbatim quote · from the corpus

“Now, if we assume that all distribution comes from the center (the only alternative assumption being that somehow everyone was simply placed exactly where they are and with whatever they have in some unfathomable way—which would, paradoxically, make it especially difficult to deal with resentments, since there would be no nomos to refer to and no way to distinguish resentment from its deferral) then the originary distribution is itself a paying of debts to those who aided in the founding of the order, and a loan to those included in the distribution—all of which involves anticipating and fending off resentments while creating new ones in the specific form of indebtedness tying the various circles of distribution to each other. If we work with and extend the formula I’ve been proposing for the juridical, i.e., that it formalizes conflicts before they can ignite the vendetta while exempting those proximal to the center from such formalization since the occupation of the center is necessary to juridical formalization in the first place (the king as ultimate judge cannot be put on trial), then the juridical is a matter of measuring resentments. (The occupant of the center can be overthrown, of course, but this is never a juridical matter—unless it’s a question of an imperial center removing a vassal—but of a bid to remake the nomos to a greater or less extent.”

— Adam Katz, The Tokenization of Resentment · Jun 03, 2024 · Bouvard Substack