Rule of Law vs Rule of Man
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Printed Date: January-10-2025 at 10:41pm
Topic: Rule of Law vs Rule of Man
Posted By: Okie Boarder
Subject: Rule of Law vs Rule of Man
Date Posted: October-28-2010 at 12:15am
I was listening to Neal Boortz this morning and he was talking about something that caught my attention. He was talking about Rule of Law vs Rule of Man.
Paraphrasing...
He was giving an example of a town of 32 people. 1 person committed a crime against the town, a 2nd is the Sheriff, and the remaining 30 are the townfolk. He went on to explain how the law exists that requires the criminal recieves a fair trial. The sheriff has an obligation to uphold the law.
The townfolk want to hang the man and bypass a trial, which puts the sheriff in a tough spot.
Does the sheriff go along with the majority, the "mainstream" or does he uphold the law?
I thought it was an intriguing example to ponder. The discussion continued to some current political figures and some discussion regarding various Supreme Court rulings or legislation that has been passed.
The question that came to mind for me was what basis our country was founded upon and whether we've followed it along the way. It seems to me like there have been times where we follow the "mainstream" and other times where we've adhered to the law.
Thoughts?
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Replies:
Posted By: OverMyHead
Date Posted: October-28-2010 at 4:18am
As a recent college grad ethics were taught as a part of each subject, and yet try to pin down an answer on what is "right" or "wrong" is nearly impossible. We have laws, which often times are a minimum standard. They are what we penalize for and only if one gets caught. Beyond that we have customs, morals, sociatle norms and accepted behaviors. For a society to be succesful it requires the most of its citizens operate at a much higher level than obeying the minimal laws.what has made the US so succesful has been its founding on the basis of individual rights and freedoms. Many believe in a "living Constitution" and picking and chosing from moral guides the parts they will apply in their lives and ignoring those they disagree with. I am personally challenged by this. Over all I think you set high standards, like those in our constitution, realising most will probably fall short, but you cannot lower the standards because they are not being met. I like to think I have a high level of ethics, and the rule of law and fairness are important to me, except of course speed limits and software copywrite laws. In my business I will go above and beyond to take care of customers even at my own expense, but then I won't let the guy merge in that waits till the last minute and wont use a turn signal. I aspire to be a good christian but I was born with sin. We see societal ebs and flows but rarely does it pay to to set your sites on being average. Over time averages tend to drop, and when you see someone else get by on average with the same rewards you are getting for exceling the tendancy is to eventually drop to average. I believe we all need to aspire to be leaders, whatever the role we are in.
To me that means:
1) serving others. Good leaders are not in it for the power , but for the chance to benifit others.
2) Live a life that is an example to others.
3)Be willing to do whats right regardless of how it will be percieved.
To answer the question. The sheriff owes it to the town to uphold the law. In the long run everyone will feel better about how the situation was handled and about the stability and moral compass of the town itself.
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For thousands of years men have felt the irresistible urge to go to sea, and many of them died. Things got better after they invented boats.
1987 Ski Nautique
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Posted By: Okie Boarder
Date Posted: October-28-2010 at 1:03pm
Dave,
Good points.
After pondering what I heard I was thinking more about some of the recent legislation passed and am contemplating whether Rule of Law or Rule of Man is applied. Legislation like the following came to mind...
TARP
Obamacare
Patriot Act
Just to name a few.
Then, what about Roe v. Wade as a court case example or the Gay Marriage issue in CA and how the proposition voted on by the people was overturned by the court.
Where do these fall? Interesting thing to consier, don't you think?
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Posted By: harddock
Date Posted: October-28-2010 at 1:13pm
If you ever watched a cowboy movie the sherriff always trys to uphold the law and give the accused a fair trial even though there is a lynch mob of citizens.
As for the Government. They create laws as they see fit without reguard to how the population feels abot the outcome. Later a group dissatisfied with the law finds a judge to overrule it.
This might not be right, legal, within the guidelines of how our forefathers intended, or the way the majority would want it but it seems to be the way this couuntry is being run.
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http://www.correctcraftfan.com/diaries/details.asp?ID=4487" rel="nofollow - 1998 Ski Nautique
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Posted By: 05 210
Date Posted: October-28-2010 at 3:04pm
If the Sherriff has a spine, he will do what is right and uphold the law he was sworn to protect. Unfortunately there aren't a whole lot of people in power in this country who fit into that category anymore.
Mike
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http:/diaries/details.asp?ID=2219" rel="nofollow - Air Nautique 210 Team
640 hours, not 1 regret
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