David Stamps: Resorting to using violence undermines the rule of law

To The Daily Sun, 

For much of the Earth’s history, government was accomplished by violence and the threat of violence. As such “rights” only existed as conferred by those in power. Thus, people tended to associate themselves with powerful people for protection. These powerful people became the “law” of the land. This method of association was based on violence. Every ruler had an army to enforce their edicts. If the ruler died or was deposed then often there was usually a war of succession followed by a period of realignment to the new ruler’s belief system.

In fact, most of the immigrants to our “New World” were fleeing their former rulers seeking freedom and safety. These Old World rulers, over time, extended their violence and oppression overseas. They often imposed taxes and used troops to enforce their will.

This all came to a head in 1776 with our Declaration of Independence from Great Britain which contained the immortal words: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

This was huge. Not only was the Declaration of Independence a breaking away from another country but it was a revolutionary statement that changed the relationship of all people to power. Originally, it only applied to white land-owners but today we believe it all applies to everyone. From these simple phrases evolved the U.S. Constitution with its Bill of Rights and Amendments cementing these rights into the Rule of Law. It also became the basis for declarations of human rights all over the world.

To accomplish this “Rule of Law,” the U.S. Constitution, the derivative federal statutes, state constitutions and their laws define both our rights and remedies. It has taken many years for the Rule of Law to be applied equally to all citizens but it is a framework. Indeed, our Constitution is a bulwark against government by power in which only the strongest wield power and protection, doled out as favors to those who support power.

The point of government by “Rule of Law” is that the rights of all are protected against arbitrary power. U.S. history is a struggle between people who still try to assert their power over us and those who choose to live under the “Rule of Law.” Indeed the Civil War was fought over whether everyone shared equally in the unalienable rights stipulated in the Constitution.

Today the struggle continues. The Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection was one of the most egregious displays of violence against the Rule of Law seen in many years. Of course, everyone who showed up that day had grievances. By using violence they were undermining the Rule of Law and were therefore undermining us all including themselves. The greatest ongoing threat from Donald Trump and the MAGA crowd is their willful undermining of the Rule of Law.

David Stamps

Laconia