Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

"Everything the Nazis did they had a law for. The mass murder was all lawful according to the 3rd Reich's laws."

Can you cite those laws?

I doubt you can, because they do not exist. There were laws for removing jews from academic positions and to confiscate their belongings - but no law allowing to kill them based on them being jews.

The Nazis operated from the very beginning on the principle do things and later maybe add a law about it, if necessary.



And it's not what rule of law mean.

I now understand why this is even a debate.

"the mechanism, process, institution, practice, or norm that supports the equality of all citizens before the law, secures a nonarbitrary form of government, and more generally prevents the arbitrary use of power."


The law's majestic equality forbids rich and poor alike to beg, sleep under bridges, and steal bread.


You ought to distinguish 'the law' that can be discriminatory, unjust, imperfect, and 'the rule of the law', which in theory cannot. In practice, the 'rule of the law' was never truly achieved, nowhere, and recently (post 9/11 it seems) the US might have gotten further from the hypothetical 'perfect state'. Presidential pardon, Guantanamo, or I think closer to everyday life civil forfeiture, or arrest without cause, interrogation without a lawyer...

Some exceptions to the rule of law are just good practice: immunity to the executive power from executing a voted law, immunity for the legislative power (in some countries like France this immunity have some caveats) while elected. Sadly it breeds corruption.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: