Der Nordstern. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1874-1931, 1922-11-09
Editorial Section

GNIIOTIn 1eSli0H
RESPECT FOR LAW.
That there i aerowing disrespect for law il this country
cannot Be denied, and there are many opinions as to thes
cause.
We cannot believe that the fault IS all with the people,
Il is not reasonable that We Americans have become law
less over night. Perhaps, the fault hes With tne avs, or WI
those that make them.
One great evil Of our times is the craze to pass e law
for all phases Of human conduct, whenever anything hap
pens we do not like we Immediately clamor tor q law 20 hx1
it. And a tyrannical sprit has begun TO manifest ltself, S.
pecially among the educated classes TO prescribe naanlfoid
rules and regulations for the masses, telling them what they
must and what they must notdo.
A government is similar to a family or to a school. II
we look around us we find families where the parents are
overly strict, harassing the children with n%unherless rules,
temperamental or hysterical commands, and making lite mis-
cradle not only for the children, but also Tor themselves.
And do we find that in such families the children DC
GROW un into good men and womenp Generally, the reverse
is true. They leave home as soon as they can, or It they re-
main at home, they are sulen and resentful, and spend Just
as little time under the parental roof as they can manage
You find no true homeife there; the children look upon u
as a prison; the parents look upon their cn ailda : ac'uai
or potential criminals.
We find the same thing true in some schools. there are
teachers that get along ~splendidly with their pupils, with very
few rules, but with a large assortment ct good common sense,
and giving the pupils a chance to exercise their conception
of right and wrong. And then we find others that are con-
tinually prescribing rules, and enforcing them, and where the
school is in a constant state Of rebellion. Which produces the
best results2
The purpose Of government is to protect the people il.
their person, and their property, and give them the greatest
opportunity for happiness. The idea that the people are tor
the government is pernicious: the government should be Tor
the people. And the more there is left to the good common
sense of a people, the fewer laws there are, the more con-
tented the people will be.
In the early days Of our republic the men that were
elected to high office, were elected because they were the
leaders in their community. And when such men came to
congress or to the legislatures, they exercised their best judg-
ment in shaping policies and enacting legislation. That such
policies and such laws met respect was q matter OF course.
But, times have changed, many a man is elected, not be
cause Of his leadership, but because he has promised some
CLIQUE that he will do their bidding. The word clique
has an ugly sound, but it fits the ugly conditions that exist
And after he is elected, he IS pethioned, lobbied, threatened,
and approached with bribes to such an extent that he can
not exercise any Judgment Of his own, if he has any, but
must hear his masters voice. And If he does defy the
demands Of the organized minority. he goes 70 his political
death. Under such circumstances, it necessarily follows, that
many laws are not representative Of the will Of the majority,
but the result Of the efforts of an organized propaganda BY q
minority.
We believe all lobbying at Legislative sessions shouldbe
prohibited. And when any society, club, organization, bloc,
or whatever else It may be called, IS organized to influence
legislation, or control the election Of candidates, they should
be compelled to incorporate, clearly stating the purpose Of
the organization, and should occupy the same position under
the corrupt practice acts that individuals occupy.
But it may be that the present manifestations st dis
respect for some laws are merely symptoms ct a deslre Tor
a change IN those laws. OF course, we are aware Of the
claims Of the friends Of some laws, ike the prohibition law:
for instance, that good citizenship requires respect for all
laws, whether we like them or not. Some even go SO Tar AS
to claim that any criticism Of their pet laws IS treason, and