04-06-2014, 06:20 PM
The government is not require to litigate its legitimacy, or lack thereof, in a criminal prosecution. Here in Texas we had a whole slew of characters claiming that the State had no authority over them, since they were citizens of the (previously existing) Republic of Texas. We had "lawyers" (certified by the Republic of Texas) representing people accused by the State, "people's judges", whole nine yards. None of it worked, nor should it.
The government rules by the consent of the people. Whether you like it or not, the overwhelming majority of us consent to be ruled by our elected officials, and that consent binds everyone, even dissidents, who choose to remain here. We further chose to change our government periodically by elections (as warped as that process is). The alternative is gunplay in the streets.
Let's do something more constructive than deny that the government has the right to accuse, prosecute, and jail people who break the rules. Let's change the rules we don't like, refuse to vote for the crooks, and speak our minds when we catch them being crooked.
The government rules by the consent of the people. Whether you like it or not, the overwhelming majority of us consent to be ruled by our elected officials, and that consent binds everyone, even dissidents, who choose to remain here. We further chose to change our government periodically by elections (as warped as that process is). The alternative is gunplay in the streets.
Let's do something more constructive than deny that the government has the right to accuse, prosecute, and jail people who break the rules. Let's change the rules we don't like, refuse to vote for the crooks, and speak our minds when we catch them being crooked.