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Saint Augustine says : an unjust law should not be considered as a law. We equally see throughout history that many people rebelled against the system because they considered it unjust: Gandhi, Thoreau, Martin Luther King, Simon Bolivar. On the other hand a society needs laws in order to function - or else anarchy will rule. In your opinion, what distinguishes an unjust law from a law that we simply do not want to comply to?
“many people rebelled against the system because they considered it unjust: Gandhi, Thoreau, Martin Luther King, Simon Bolivar”
True, true!
But then so did Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof. So did (do) IRA and ETA. There’s obviously no absolute justice.
Neither can we rely on numbers; majority is not always right.
Indeed, it’s the fundamental fault of democracy - we have got used to the idea that majority always wins and the winner, of course, has the right to determine what is just and what is not.
However, this principle of democracy does not differ much from the jungle laws where the stronger one wins and the bigger herd makes the rules.
I think it was in the movie “Bonfire of Vanities”, where Morgan Freeman in the role of the judge said that (quoting from memory) ‘law is the Man’s feeble attempt to write down the principles of decency’. Well, at least that’s how it should be. If we could achieve that, the question of ‘unjust law’ would cease, wouldn’t it?
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“…in order to forget the rules you must them and respect them” Nabil Alaihi (Witch of Portobello)
is there not an equal side to order as there is chaos. all laws have a responsibility to the humanity in which they serve as humanity bares equal responsibility to those laws. it is the manner and path of enforcement that’s seems imperative to me. There will always be good and evil, where you choose to stand makes it just or unjust.
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A law that is written in the absence of unconditional love.
“I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality”.
Martin Luther King
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First thing I would like say thank you Paulo … you changed my life and my friends life your book the alchemist made us change … the book went around the whole group and we all loved it and we started to think and become HUMANS…..
The idea of a law being just or unjust law is personal dilemma…. and wither if you going to comply to or not it is a totally different story….let us start with knowing what a law and if it is a good thing or just a way of suppressing our freedom …… Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) … was a British philosopher and author of the famous political treaties “Leviathan” … his work can be summarised in one statement… “The nature state of man is one of war and strife, unless acted upon and governed by the rules of social living” it means simply if we did not have laws whatever its source we wouldn’t have came that far on our journey on earth as a human race we will be still be probably living among the rest of the beings in the jungle..Struggling to survive!!! So without laws we wouldn’t have become superiors over other species … that doesn’t mean that all laws are to be obeyed… Because some of them are made to be suppress us and it is not part of our human nature … St. Thomas Aquinas identifies the rational nature of human beings as that which defines moral law: “the rule and measure of human acts is the reason, which is the first principle of human acts”….
Scientist have proven that human are born were a set of codes that govern our behaviour we do without thinking about like walking, talking, helping each other and even believe it or not do mathematics ( I was like wow when I heard that fact specially that I study molecular pathology …. I was like where are the genes for that sort of stuff but I have seen experiments done psychologist and their work is very genuine) … the natural laws is thing that we do without thinking about, however the impurities of lives like greed, hunger, pain, poverty, abuse, stress and the busy life make us change the way we used to be when we were born ,,, make us forget about our dreams and the simple stuff that used to make us happy ,, and loving life… Life make us go back to the state of war and strife like what Hobbes philosophy ,….
So in conclusion if it is a natural law … it is Just law that everybody will comply to… without fighting or opposing cause its part of who he is !!!… The Question is now how to know if a law is a natural Low or not …with three examples in reference …Legalising abortions, legalising marijuana and just simply stopping at the traffic light, wearing your seat belt !!!!!
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An unjust law is one that gives certain rights to the majority but not to minorities, based on the current popular religion (though justice is supposed to be blind).
A just law that we don’t want to comply to may be something like following the speed limit when the roads seem clear, or stopping at red lights in the early morn when there is no traffic. … seemingly ridiculous rules that save lives or prevent us from harming eachother.
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mesmo assim anarquia foi “encontrada” em alguns grandes reinos africanos….antes dos ocidentais deixarem a sua marca….muito antes…
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Uma lei injusta ajuda-nos a lutar pelo justo..a aperfeiçoar o sistema de regras e leis, a outra lei ajuda-nos a aperceber que existem essas regras e que temos algum espaço de manobra no meio delas.
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an unjust law is one that prevents people to move freely in spirit. I believe that spirit moves freely within truth, honest life experience… with an option to choose between “wrong” and “right” through a conscience…a feeling…like a filter. Laws prevent people from deciding who they are for themselves..hence taking consequence away…robbing us of lessons that need to be learned.
a just law…does the opposite it forces those lessons. It allows us to moves freely safely and with discipline. Like universal laws…they are tools to get us through…maybe those “wrong” decisions…
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Laws are usually fair for some people and unfair for other people, and I mean in the same society. People are mostly driven by their personal interests. For the one who is poor, it’s fair to give him land. For the one who is rich, it’s unfair to take some of his land and hand it out to others. There are always two sides on a coin.
The only law that can actually make earth a better place, if each and every one of us respects it, is: ‘don’t do to others what you don’t want them to do to you’.
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What distinguishes an unjust law from a law that wesimply do not want to comply to?
There is God, there is Love and then there is law.
Notice the order. God’s law is love, “Law” is what we, or they
conveniently put in place for better or for worse.
If we took the time to understand why laws are necessary then we would then know the importance in which to follow them according to the will of God, so distinguishing between the two is simple.
Do unto others as you want done unto you, what is right is right, and what is wrong is wrong and it is up to you to decide if you are willing to live with the consequence of your decision.
I will say to comply with an unjust law is merely a choice to
reconcile the differences of the situation at hand, and discover the real reason why the law was set in
place first and foremost. Usually the root of it all will hold the truth, the answer and weather or not it is about standing up for what you believe in or about being prideful and unwilling to embrace your humility. For the wise man comes from one who has learned from his mistakes and is proud to except them as his own.
thank you for your inspiring heart.
-costa
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Law itself is unjust, a product of the human mind seeking to control the uncontrollable. Which is not to say that ‘law’ does not operate in the cosmos. Gravity has a pretty good way of convincing us that it works! Yet birds fly!!! The trick is to find how we can become attuned to the law which works, and implement that as a way of life, instead of laws which tell us what to do and what not to do… Like anti-smoking laws and laws against trans-fats in restaurant food…
I remember Lau-Tzu referring to water as a most powerful force. If we can only become attuned to such a flow in the world we wouldn’t need restrictions other than the natural course through which we would flow. Not the Los Angeles river though…
So, yes, I have to say that all man made laws are off the mark and any set of ‘god-given’ laws probably are to since they tend to end up in man’s hands and become a cudgel to whip people into shape.
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I love reading all the different opinions…makes this board really great!!!
It is interesting how this all comes down to point of view really, even regarding the laws themselves. Unjust laws are not unjust to everyone, and those I doubt see it as unjust. I doubt the slave owners ever really saw much of a problem with laws legalizing slavery, while I am sure they saw the laws that abolished slavery as unjust.
There is a great quote from Winston Churchill “History shall be kind to me, for I intend to write it”. So true, especially for that time period. How we would look at things like the Holocuast had Hitler had won the war. Unfortuanatly, winners tend to get their way in this world. We have this beleif that good, has in the end, always triumphed in this world. But is that really the case? Or is just that once you win you are in power and thus it is tough to be proven wrong?
When an unjust law is challenged by just men (Ghandi, Martin Luther King Jr), it is displayed to the world what is wrong with the law. These people were able to be more then just people, they were able to do more than just speak out against something, they will able to not only have, but become and idea. And idea can be a powerfull thing to move humanity to be better.
I think in the end good almost always does triumph evil in this world, and the old unjust laws give way to increased freedom and civil liberties. It just takes a person to stand up against that law and become an idea, that idea seems to spread and inspire others. For great examples see Ghandi, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr, Hariet Tubman, Jesus.
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Law,
the solicitors knows more about it then me. A fair law is the one which keeps the order on the society, could not be on your side altough is generally good. An unfair law is the one which is not good generally speaking, support one side better than the other.
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Hola Pablo, paso a dejar mi huella por su blog y a decirle que todos sus libros me han gustado muchísimo, en especial Brida (mi favorito) y El Alquimista. Feliz estataré de tenerlo en mi lista de favoritos.
Un beso.
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a justified law is one that doesn’t harm anyone and prevents suffering… an unjust law like those Gandhi, Thoreau, Martin Luther King, Simon Bolivar fought against are laws created to benefit a certain group of people by using another group of people.
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Its amazing how can a simple question generate these many different point of view. It actually proves that every point (of view) is also comprised of other infinite points.
An unjust law is difficult to define. To refine it down to one sentence we can just say a law makes everyone better off without making someone worse off (sorry for my tech accent). But if you look at the micro level there is nobody in this world which can make such a “law”. So we even if we say we must all start going with our intuition what is the guaranty that everyone will like what you do. Its true that our intuition will never try to harm anyone but there is nothing to ensure that whatever we do will not harm anyone. Its complicated but i just tried to say what i wanted
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A just law is one that is designed out of love - like red traffic lights for example, save lives… or at least that is the intention. “Just” laws generally provide more good things than bad. They are like blankets to soften the rough edges of life and make people feel safe, so they may prosper with business, family, enjoying life, etc.
An unjust law is one designed out of greed, ego or lust for power and generally causes more harm than good. And some unjust laws are created out of fear of CHANGE.
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I’m with laws that secure individual rights that are related to public safety & health, laws that organize any community & lead to its prosperous & take it to higher levels. Also laws that have humanitarian senses & values which can be applied to any human being.
On the other hand unfair laws come when laws that are related to specific cultural conventions & traditions force others to follow it.
the unjust law is “to kill the Free Will” of any person.
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You know, I am amazingly ecstatic about how many people chose to express their opinion about this question. It just goes to show, that people really do care in this world. Any way, an unjust law, to me, is one that goes against the natural law of the world aand universe, and subjects people to unfair punishment. A specific example is the unfair punishment for people who are in possession of, or grow marijuana. It is natural, and it also has many benefits and practical uses. It is unfair to be put behind bars for years and years, just for growing a plant. The logic behind it is just not there.
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By the way I dont no how i found you but YOU are threw my eyes a inspiration (genius) . But is knowledge a curse or a gift ?
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YOU CANT ! It’s based on common sense but not every one has common sense. We are influenced by our teachers, friends and of course parents but everyone is raised differently . There are no definite answers to any questions. It’s a matter of power that creates law either it’s a power of a society or of a dictator
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Dear Mr Coelho and visitors to this blog,
A Malaysian citizen by the name of Anwar Ibrahim was taken into police today, 16th of July, 2008, at about 1pm local time in Kuala Lumpur by a large team of police office that also comprise a group of police special action force, that is police commando, to apprehend Mr Anwar. He was arrested in a very brutal manner over a charge of sodomy, for which Mr Anwar was on his way to the police station to have his statement recorded. Malaysians largely, do not accept this accusation of sodomy brought by his temporary assistant, a young man of 23, (while Mr Anwar is about 61 year old and suffer back pain due to an earlier police beating while in police custody about 10 years ago.)
This sodomy case, as was the previous sodomy charges 10 years ago, was politically motivated to discredit Mr Anwar and particularly to destroy his political career.
This information concerning Mr Anwar Ibrahim is not exhaustive but simply to voice out my sense of anger and distress at such blatant use of force against an individual which has no special power nor team of bodyguard nor weapons of any kind by the instrument of the state, namely the police.
Many Malaysian regard this sodomy charge as politically motivated by the highest political elite of the dominant political party of the governing.
Mr Anwar was a Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Malaysia back in 1998 before he was unceremoniously sacked by the then Prime Minister, Dr Mahathir, trial over trump up charges of sodomy and corruption, put to jail and while in jail was brutally assaulted by the Chief Police Officer of Malaysia. This beating nearly caused his death. Since his release from prison in 2004, Mr Anwar has over the years, rebuild his politically career although he was restricted from running for public office until April 2008.
We hope no harm of any kind will come to Mr Anwar Ibrahim while in police custody for he was readily to cooperate with police investigation over his alleged sodomy charge.
The hope here is, like any other police state society in many parts of the whole, truth and justice will prevail so that peace can remain.
There is one particular unjust law that Malaysian wants to remove, that is, the Internal Security Act. This act gave the authority unlimited power to detain a person without trial for an indefinite amount of time. Anyone on only mere suspicious of threat to national security will be detained by the police indefinitely.
There are other unjust laws, this one is the first to go if a new government of the people for the people by the people rule.
Thank you for your patient and space for allowing this comment.
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Olá
Paulo nos dá uma boa idéia do que seja uma lei, na sua carta aos Gálatas, ele nos diz que para se cumprir uma lei primeiramente precisamos estar em “conduta” errada, para que a lei possa ser cumprida.
Uma pessoa que não é assassina por natureza não está cumprindo nenhuma lei ao não matar ninguém, mas se ela afirmar que não comete tal ato por medo da lei, ela assume que possui tal “tendência” em si.
Então se alguém diz: Eu não cometo adultério porque a lei não permite. Está afirmando em alto e bom som, que é um adúltero ou idólatra (em se tratando de leis Divinas).
Por isso, digo que as lei foram feitas para os seres que ainda não conseguem viver sem ela e para proteger os que podem.
Quanto a uma lei ser injusta, então se pode dizer que ela não é uma lei e sim uma ordem imposta por alguém que não conhece a lei primordial (proteção aos que não precisam praticar a lei!)
Muita Sorte e Ótimas Vendas de seus livros!
Ana Paula Camillo
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this is so weird! the law defines justice…! so what on earth does unjust law mean? maybe it just needs a clause for exception-handling, in cases when the human heart does not see that the law indeed upheld what is right and good.
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Hi all,
In my opinion
A law is a written rule set for us to comply whether we like it or not.
Unjust law occurs when individual/people disagree and rebel against that written law due to certain reasons
If I’m against a law (new/existing), I refer it as an “unjust law”
If I agree to a law which some don’t, I would say that it’s just a law that people don’t want to comply to.
A law can be an unjust law but an unjust law should not be considered as a law (I agree with St.A)
Have a good day all
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Hello Paulo!!!
C’est peut-être enfantin et simpliste mais pour moi, si mon coeur est en paix avec quelque chose c’est que ça va et qu’il n’y a pas d’injustice… Mon coeur est mon fidèle allié…
LOVE…
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love. If the law is based on love, it is fair. but if not, you should not obey it.
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It seems to me that the idea of what is just is wide open to interpretation. What may seem just to one man or society may seem like a prison to another. Perhaps it is true that we only feel bound by laws - just or otherwise - when we bind ourselves internally with fear, lack of trust, honour or respect and by attempting to be what we are not.
Love and blessings
Rebecca
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Most laws are based upon religion. Worldwide laws are made to treat humans ethically, some not really but as long as it complies with the standard of their religion, yet not everyone believes in God or the teachings of Jesus or whatever other religions. The Bible began laws and with time laws have blinded love and those laws have created chaos.
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Well, technically, nothing. For we do not wish to follow both, and so the feeling is mutual.
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While we encounter a law that is simply difficult to obey, what is in our mind is just OUR OWN convenience and safety.
But we recognize a law as unjust only when we have OTHERS also in our mind,who are going to be affected unfairly by that law.
With love…smitha
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Legal laws and moral laws are made to make society function. They are made by people with rulemaking power in whatever culture. If I find one such law unfair, that´s my opinion - do I agree or disagree with this social or moral or legal rule?
If I in my personal life am faced to deal with the effects of one such law that goes against my heart´s ethics in such a way that I
can´t comply with the social or legal or moral law, than
I´m faced with an ethic choice. This is a question of which authority I should follow, somebody else´s rule or my own self authority? Do I want to follow a rule I can´t comply with or do I need to follow my heart´s ethics?
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Legal laws and moral laws are made to make society function. They are made by people with rulemaking power in whatever culture. If I find one such law unfair, that´s my opinion - do I agree is disagree with this social or moral or legal rule?
If I in my personal life am faced to deal with the effects of one such law that goes against my heart´s ethics in such a way that I
can´t comply with the social or legal or moral law, than
I´m faced with an ethic choice. This is a question of which authority I should follow, somebody else´s rule or my own self authority? Do I want to follow a rule I can´t comply with or do I need to follow my heart´s ethics?
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An unjust law is an unfair law. It’s not so much distinguished from laws that people don’t want to obey as subsumed within that much broader category. (That is, there are many just as well as just laws that people often try to avoid complying with.)
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