> The only incentive governments ever have to not do bad shit is that the people will hate it so much that the government will wind up with less power than they started with.

Well, that's the trick, isn't it? You have to give people a way to reduce government's power if the government does something the people don't like, but do it in a way that keeps society from flying apart.

Guns are an answer to the first problem but not the second, which is why the claim that guns protect the people from tyranny is so wrong.

The best solution i can think of is constantly seeking to reduce the government and limit it's power, size and responsibilities, always trimming the hedge. I.E. conservatism. Any government fundementally should be trusted and relied upon as little as possible, if you want to prevent abuses.

You're not describing conservatism, you're describing anarchism.