Civil disobedience in the modern United States is morally justified.

Rebuttals: 1: "Government Abandonment of Constitutional restraints." Rebuttal 1 Hearsay: Hearsay: "unverified, unofficial information gained or acquired from another and not part of one"s direct knowledge."(1) My opponent says of the Federal Government, " It destroys the concept of Federalism and bypasses the constitutional process of amending the Constitution." I invite my opponent to substantiate this claim with factual sources, as well as each claim that he has made in his first argument. Without sources, the referenced "disobedience" by the United States Government is my opponent"s opinion, as opposed to empirical evidence. Thus, this entire first argument my opponent submitted is nothing more than hearsay and does not warrant rebuttal. That stated my opponent included a quote from the Declaration of Independence. This quote references despotism, and that when such a government exists, that it is the people"s right and duty to throw off such a government. I submit the definition of Despot Despot: ": a ruler who has total power and who often uses that power in cruel and unfair ways" (2) As the United States clearly is not under the rule of a despot, the quote from the declaration of Independence hardly applies. 2. "Government Tyranny & Abuse" Rebuttal 2: Lets compare I again invite my opponent to provide links and sources to substantiate his claims. As I do not want my whole rebuttal to contain only this reminder for my opponent I will indulge my opponent"s claims in this argument. Tyranny: "cruel and unfair treatment by people with power over others."(3) None of the things listed by my opponent constitute tyranny. The Rhetoric my opponent uses imply that he must be an extreme Libertarian. This is the ideology that commonly calls taxation" theft. While I respect my opponent"s views as his, overwhelmingly the world has accepted taxes as an essential part of a functioning society. The same is true with the bulk of my opponent"s examples of "tyranny." As my opponent quoted another statement from the founding period of this nation I would like to point out that, as a whole, people in this country are more free from tyranny now, then under the newly formed United States. I am sure most would agree that fuel grade restrictions are much less tyrannical than a slave master to a slave. Granted this type of tyranny was perpetrated by individuals as opposed to the government, it was only possible as the government did not protect the individual liberty as effectively as it does now. It is also useful to note that under the original constitution there was blatant tyranny written into the document. The three fifths clause serves as evidence of this. 3:"Redress & Voting" My opponent provides three reasons why "Voting is inadequate." Before I address those points I would like to remind my opponent that voting is just one of many things that citizens can do to effect change. Rebuttal 3a: My opponent says "We have a Two Party System, which is a fairly large limitation on the choice (one or the other) who are selected by a caucus of loyal partisans and when both parties are essentially committed to ever increasing expansions of the size, scope, and intrusion of government." The U.S. political system is often referred to as a two party system. However, there do exist other political parties, and on occasion there candidates do get elected. This link list"s third party elected officials.(4) Rebuttal 3b: My opponent says " Consider the millions of people who are employed by the government and have a vested interest in perpetuating it's growth, the millions employed under government contract, the millions of people vested through social and welfare programs, and the billions of dollars in programs and grants with the ability and willingness of politicans to affect more is a huge financial incentive and a corrupting influence on the voters." My opponents argument here is an appeal to motive and as such, is logically fallacious.(5) Rebuttal 3c: My opponent says "Time and again, the Judicial Branch has demonstrated a willingness to impose law and policy by fiat even developing a discipline that advocates judicial activism and lawmaking." The Judicial branch does not write law. However, they do function to check and balance the potential "tyranny of the majority." None of these three reasons my opponent has listed would morally justify civil disobedience. Rebuttal 3d: My opponents next paragraph that starts with "Also, it is worth noting that our current immigration debate further demonstrates how Government willingly bypasses the wishes of an overwhelming majority of Americans"" is another example of hearsay. I again invite my opponent to submit sources and facts that support these claims. Rebuttal D: Conclusion As my opponent provided no sources to back up the claim that "We are in an age of assaults on the very foundations of civilized freedom ushering in a collectivist era and massive violations of rights," then his conclusion that "Civil disobedience is therefore moral and just" has no support. Extended arguments: A: Civil Disobedience has been rendered obsolete and immoral via Social Contract/voting rights My opponent only offered opinions to counter this, with no supporting sources, as I have rebutted those, this argument stands B: The main issues with Civil Disobedience My opponent seemingly ignored this portion of my argument, so this argument also still stands. As both arguments still stand my conclusion still stands "There are issues with and caused by civil disobedience. In the current political climate in the United States it is more efficient to petition the government through existing laws. If there do exist unjust laws, we the people are empowered with voting rights, among other rights to go about effecting change. This has rendered Civil disobedience both an immoral and obsolete option in the United States." (1) http://dictionary.reference.com... (2) http://www.merriam-webster.com... (3) http://www.merriam-webster.com... (4) http://en.wikipedia.org... (5) http://en.wikipedia.org...