Is Rule of Law dead?

[Andy Horning]

We each have our favorite parts of the state and federal constitutions. But most of us oppose others' favorite parts with at least equal fervor. In fact, it seems to me that most of us willingly give up what used to be considered precious rights in order to deny others theirs.
The as-written constitutional design, and therefore, Rule of Law, has essentially been dead at least since the New Deal.
Are we all OK with this? Or do we want our politicians on a leash?

[Andy Horning]

Thank you too! There were several polls done for both the election and the debates. I saw a top figure of about 200K viewers for all debates/about two and a half million voters. The top name ID I saw was about twenty percent. Even Jill Long Thompson got only into the low eighties in name ID.
And name ID isn't the same as understanding the option behind that name.
We have some horrendous problems in this country...and we've voted for all of them! I get a little amused when I see polls showing how many people want term limits; particularly since we vote for incumbents 98% of the time!

[Steve Stuck]

That is the debate I am having within myself about term limits. They sound nice but what are the down falls?

[Andy Horning]

The downfall is that in a democratic republic we have nobody to blame but the collective "us" for all the troubles we choose. Term limits may mitigate bad voting to a degree, and I'm in fact in favor of them because we do, in fact, vote very badly (...anybody sensing sour grapes here? Hmmm).
But even oppressive dictatorships are by at least some degree of consent of the governed.

[Steve Stuck]

Blaming the voters is very much too be said. I remember when I posted on SI that consumers are much too blame when the economy started tanking. The collective classes still refused to accept it and ran to ideological sides. But never the "Welfare State" can be blamed.

[Andy Horning]

Yes to all the above. I'd add only that I want "Liberty" defined in black and white and I want politicians, soldiers and policemen to promise to obey such limitations on their authority...as the law already requires. Good fences make good neighbors; good laws keep politicians on their side of the fence.
Life is too short to waste it in a constant tussle over other people's rights, property and lives.