0910AW Issue17 By 家家

家家☆yoonjaeUID: 2646910

17"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."

The argument which the arguer claimed that individual in a society should obey just law and disobey unjust law seems relatively sound, while after considering the intricate definition of law, the statement above is oversimplify the influence of the law upon the human world. We need to treat this issue in a more comprehensive and rational way, then we can achieve a more stable and harmonious society.

First and foremost, there are no absolute just laws and unjust laws. Let's go retrospect the specific definition of law, which is a rule of conduct or action prescribed or formally recognized as binding or enforced by a controlling authority. We can clearly check out that laws always enforced by a controlling authority, this indicates that laws are representative of the controlling authority's wills. Under normal circumstances, such kinds of wills usually comply with the wishes of the vast majority of people because the ultimate objective of both sides is corresponding, then those people will trust the law is fair and just. But the judgments of people are always subjected to aspects of the conditions and preconditions, such like regional differences, cultural differences, and different positions, different values, etc. Cite homosexual marriage as an instance, it's illegal for homosexual persons get married in majority of nations, a person who has normal sexual orientation may treat this problem with careless attitude and feel nothing unjust, however, we can easily imagine the affliction and indignation these special community may have if we were lesbians or gays ourselves. Every individual has his own standard to judge between just and unjust although everyone is equality before the law.

In the second place, the law is not always invariable; it is also advancing with the changes of the Epochs and societies. As we all know, the action of laws considered as a means of redressing wrongs, a rule or order that it is advisable or obligatory to observe, then the law need to be continuously improved according to the progresses of times and societies. More and more problems which never happened before appeared, people cannot find the exact legal provisions which can be followed to judge the correctness; it's doubtless that the legislator has responsibility to amend and supplement existing laws timely and advisably. The laws changes with economic development, technical advance and changes in historical background, alternatives of the ruling class, we can not make generalizations to describe it is just or not. Monopoly law as a typical example which can support this issue; we never heard the word of  "monopoly" before early seventies of the nineteenth, but we can easily find such news like Microsoft violated the rules of monopoly law nowadays.

In addition, the way that people deal with the law is of vital importance to social peace and stability. If every citizen was reckless resisting what they perceived as unjust laws, then would cause very bad consequences beyond the shadow of a doubt. There is no absolute sound and just laws as we mentioned in the second paragraph, and we also clear that the laws need to be modified or supplemented, so we can feed back our feedbacks to the government or the legislator then it may be helpful. More and more nations encourage their native citizens to submit their views of the existing laws, and then amend the laws in a more effective and reasonable way. Citizens have the responsibility to oppugn the law, but cannot reckless defy.

Thus, to sum up the points which we have just indicated, as one of the crucial elements of contemporary life, the laws have to be served as the guidance for almost all the citizens to live and work in a right way and also provide them with a stabilized environment; people have to treat the law in a more comprehensive and rational way, we have responsibilities to obey the law and oppugn the law at the same time. Better laws, better citizens, then better society.