TOPIC: ISSUE17 - "There are two types of laws: just and unjust. Every individual in a society has a responsibility to obey just laws and, even more importantly, to disobey and resist unjust laws."
有保留的反对:法律没有公平、不公平之分,人们应该遵守法律。不健全distempered的法律可以amended
1、 区分just and unjust 每人观点不同
牟利的商人、不想上学的孩子
2、 人们有义务遵守法律
工厂生产时保护环境
3、 不遵守法律可能带来的后果
4、 法律不合理可以改进
13th amendment to free the slaves
15th amendment to ensure the blacks have right to vote
The speaker asserts that the laws can be divided in to two groups, and every citizen has a responsibility to obey just laws and more importantly, to disobey and resist unjust ones. However, although I concede that it is necessary for every individual to abide by law, I disagree with the speaker almost fundamentally in that responsibility to obey just laws and to disobey unjust laws.
To begin with, in order to get a clear view of the so-called two types of laws claimed by the speaker, one must come to question the function of laws. Made to protect the broad right of the public, to enable a particular groups such as people who are mentally- and physically challenged to enjoy reasonable rights, to ensure the well-being of our society, our law really functions as a fundamental rule for each and every individual in our society to follow in order to ensure the well-being and prosperous of the whole country. To quest whether a certain law is just or unjust, the answer to this question might vary form people to people. For instance, manufacturers and factory owners who are pursuing the maximum income at the lowest cost may view it is reasonable to increase profit at the expense of our environment. Or a child who dislikes school or being educated may find it unfair for everyone to receive education under the law requires compulsory school attendance. It is therefore, the justness of law could not be recognized properly by a certain individual.
Additionally, I find it necessary for every individual to abide by laws, as without laws, we has only our moral which can easily give way to emotions and feelings such as hate and jealousy, to adjust our behaviors, therefore our society may undergo chaos as a result. Consider if a manufacturer find it is unprofitable to implement certain protecting measures to protect our environment under certain laws concerning about protecting environment, then the owner may take every possible steps to increase profits regardless of the impact on our environment which is already so delicate to the extent that human being's survival is threatened. Or consider the compulsory school attendance which has already became law in most civilized countries, if most parents find it better off for their children who are our society's future dominators to work at an early age instead of getting enrolled in school, our society may have to stand broad unemployment, increasing crimes, decreased moral standard, and so forth. In short, every individual should obey laws in order to ensure the well-being of the society as a whole.
Unlike moral which can be affirmed and discredited, however, unreasonable laws at a certain stage can be amended so that they meet the requirement of legal demands and make a society a better and respectful one. For example, in order to fulfill the American dream that all men are born equal, the 13 amendment was made to free the slaves, while 15th amendment to ensure black people's right for vote. Moreover, as more and more women get involved in work field and have broadened their horizon in knowledge, the demand for women to vote was increasing so that the 19th amendment was made to meet this demand. Laws are not born to be just; it is people's reasonable demands that make laws healthy, proper and well-rounded.
To sum up, the speaker overlooks the purpose and function of laws. While I concede that some laws may appear to be unjust for certain group of people, I do believe it is everyone's obedience to law and the ability to query the reasonableness of law that make our society a better one and make the world a better place for us to live.
一开始居然忘记帖提纲了,谢谢楼下提醒阿
[ 本帖最后由 kexinyupiao 于 2007-2-12 18:55 编辑 ] |