Final answer:
A "just" authority is one that has accepted power and is respected by the populace, with its guidance seen as reasonable and beneficial. Modern representative democracies, where leaders are elected for specified terms, exemplify this concept, as does the revered figure of Mohandas Gandhi.
Step-by-step explanation:
The concept of a "just" authority according to Brooks pertains to an entity that wields accepted power, meaning that such power is acknowledged and followed by the people. In this context, individuals respect the authority figure and believe in the reasonableness and benefit of their objectives and demands. A just authority is perceived as legitimate and its guidance as true.
Present-day examples of admirable authorities include rational-legal systems like those found in modern representative democracies, where individuals are elected for specified terms and authority lies within the office rather than the officeholder. These systems maintain stability through the people's trust in the office structure and the process by which the leaders are chosen. Another example is the influence of leaders such as Mohandas Gandhi, who was seen as both a charismatic and a legal-rational authority figure due to his personal virtues and rational adherence to the system.
Historically, early political philosophers such as Plato and Socrates also grappled with the concept of justice in authority, where the most virtuous members of society serve as guardians, and where the just city and the just individual are corollaries with regards to success and happiness.