Civil Disobedience

 

Do you dislike having the military coming into town to beef up law enforcement efforts? So do I, but you know, it is what happens if we, the people, cannot govern ourselves. Does this sound odd to you? It should not, for just as parents and teachers punish children if they do not obey the rules, citizens are punished if they do not obey the law.

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This is not a new idea. It has been around since the earliest days of the Holy Bible. It all began with Adam and Eve, who were banished from the Garden of Eden after they committed the one offense God had asked them not to commit (Genesis 2:8 – 3:19). Next came Cain and Abel, the eldest sons of Adam and Eve. Cain became jealous of Abel when God did not value his offering of fruit from his orchard equally with Abel’s offering of the finest sheep from his herd. Cain killed Abel. In punishment, God banished Cain to a life of wandering (Genesis 4:1-11). No longer did he have his family or his orchard or any of the things that he had valued in his life.

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We can expect to be punished when we do not obey the rules. Come to school late without a note from your parents, and you will forfeit a few recesses. Rob a store, and you will find yourself in prison for a few years. Commit murder, and you will find yourself in prison for the rest of your life.

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How does the government enter this picture? A democracy is based on the premise that “government governs best that governs least” (Attributed to Henry David Thoreau, “Civil Disobedience,” 1849). In short, for a democracy to survive, its citizens must govern themselves. If its citizens do not govern themselves by obeying the rules and laws, then government will have no choice but to step in and govern them. When that happens, democracy begins to fade, and dictatorship begins to enter the picture.

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That is what is taking place when Washington sends in the National Guard to help local jurisdictions enforce the laws. It is not a pretty picture, seeing the military patrolling our city streets, but if the citizens cannot obey the laws, then we can expect little else. In short, Dad has entered the room and taken away our car keys, cells phones, and TVs.

 

Is this what we want for our country, our lifestyle? Not I! Nor, I hope and pray, do you.​

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