>> guest: well, from that era, i would say rousseau -- "the social contract" by rousseau. it sums up almost every fallacy of left/liberal thought of the entire modern era, regardless of the ... c-span: every fallacy? >> guest: just about every fallacy, as i see it, in the sense that what rousseau argues -- he begins, first of all, from the idea of natural goodness of man -- is the typical left/liberal assumption. c-span: but the liberal's sitting there with rousseau, saying, "this is what i believe." >> guest: well, i'm not sure at this day, they would say that, but certainly over the years they have. and rousseau is treated as some great guru in the conventional history lesson, and yet, if you read what he actually said, it's appalling. but... c-span: what did he say -- go ahead. go ahead. >> guest: well, what he says basically is that government can just do anything it wants to and that the social contract -- and i quote the language in the book -- is that we alienate all of our rights to the general will to the community with no reservation of freedom whatsoever, and th