[clue-talk] The War On...?

[Jeff Cann]

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On Thursday 30 December 2004 6:20 pm, Collins Richey wrote:
> On Thu, 30 Dec 2004 17:01:56 -0700, Jeff Cann <j.cann at isuma.org> wrote:
> > My point is that obeying unjust laws - laws which violate the conscious
> > of society - is paramount to getting them changed.  There are many
> > examples of this in history.  Just sitting back, 'trying to change them'
> > is not always effective especially when you need to put the world's
> > spotlight on them.
>
> I'm confused. You probably meant NOT obeying?

Right - I meant 'not obeying'.

> In any case, I have difficult with the whole Thoreau, "civil
> disobedience" thing.

To characterise it as a 'thing' is interesting.

> The problem comes in when you extend that concept to "anything the
> person who is disobeying the law finds objectionable." 

Collins,

No one, including me, would legitimately 'extend' civil disobedience into 
disobeying *any* laws that a person finds objectionable.   Anyone who thinks 
civil disobedience is a means to simply ignore all laws is misguided.  
Thoreau, Ghandi, Mandela, and King jr. would agree, I'm sure.

I think Thoreau and others who practiced civil disobedience would argue that 
it's not simply when an individual chooses that something is unjust.  It's 
when the government [which we the citizens grant powers to] acts in ways that 
are not in concert with the moral concensus of the citizens.   This is by 
definition 'unjust'.

You can read the text for Civil Disobedience here.  I think HDT explains his 
rationale clearly.

 + http://www.cs.indiana.edu/statecraft/civ.dis.html

Jeff
- -- 
"Science can purify religion from error and superstition. Religion can purify 
science from idolatry and false absolutes."
- - Pope John Paul II

http://isuma.org/
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