Alien Brain Fog - Episode 003 - What is The Rule of Law?

 

Transcript of Episode

OPENING

If an alien shows up at the mall and robs your store, can you charge him with theft?

Are certain people like Donald Trump really above the law or fooling themselves? 

Both of these questions can be answered by looking at the Rule of Law. What is it and who does it apply to? And more importantly, do we currently live under the Rule of Law or are WE fooling ourselves?

WHAT IS THE RULE OF LAW?

Recently, Donald had a court case postponed while the courts determined if he has immunity. Immunity to what you may ask? The law. It is Donald Trump’s belief that he is above the law and can face no consequences for his actions.

Federal judge postpones trial in Trump’s DC election interference case

So is this true?

Fair warning, this does involve a little history. But I believe it’s important to remember your past. That’s why our brains have memory. It helps you predict the future.

Which may be why certain groups of people want to ban books. And tell you people educated in history are the enemy.

Our history in the Western world is complex. We have not always been run by rule of law even when we claimed to be.  In the past the rich and those of certain bloodlines were held above the law. Almost like you’re a hockey player in Canada.

Your degree of economic power determined whether or not the law applied to you. 

So a very brief history of western law.

I know some people are obsessed with the Roman empire. So let’s start there. It was understood during roman times that without the law, people would be at the mercy of violent men. Romans believed without the law, civilization would collapse. So they codified the law, meaning put in writing and, at least in theory, made sure everyone followed the rules.

Game of Thrones was fiction, but the behaviour of the rulers was pretty historically accurate. At one point, the people were led to believe that their leaders were chosen by god. To question the leader was to question God. Which meant you were a demon and should be unalived. 

In 1215, England made the bold move to putting in writing that maybe the king was not above the law. That maybe no one was above the law. This is what we mean when we say Rule of Law. That the law is supreme. The law applies to everyone. 

The Magna Carta also gave us other rights. For example, it prevented unlawful imprisonment. Prior to that, you could just be arrested and thrown in jail without charges or trial. Kind of like the Patriot Act.

 The English Bill of Rights was passed in 1689. It allowed the election of representatives without the royal approval and prevented royals from interfering with the law. Because your leadership is not supposed to sway the way you vote. Like in Gerrymandering.

. In Canada, we have the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that was included in our Constitution Act of 1982. This gave the courts the power to strike down laws that were unconstitutional. So what does that mean?

In Canada, no law can be passed that contradicts your human rights. The rights you have because you were born a human. In emergency cases, like war, the government can ignore some civilian rights. But there is also something called the notwithstanding clause. This allows law makers to break the law and ignore constitutional freedoms, but only for a limited timed time. In Canada, the government can limit our rights, but it has to PROVE there was a need to do so. 

Because the law has more power than people.

TRUMP vs. TRUDEAU

Both of these men are loved by few, hated by many. But are they the same? Trump incites an insurrection, found guilty of sexual assault, found guilty of fraud, took money from foreign leaders while in office, and is currently telling the world how he will become a dictator and turn America fully a Christian Theocracy ruled by him, the second coming of Christ. And because a certain group of people believe he has been sent by God, it appears they also have decided he is above the law. 

I have a friend with a DUI who can’t cross the border. Trump gets to run for office and command armies.

Meanwhile in Canada, Trudeau used the Emergency Measure’s Act to break up a disruptive event in Ottawa that began as a protest but turned into a circus. 

The courts here ruled the government exceeded their authority. Leaders in Canada do not have the right to do whatever they want.

This would give the appearance that the rule of Law is more in effect in Canada than it currently is in the United States. Because a growing number of Americans seem to believe the law does not apply equally to everyone.

So who does the rule of law apply to?

WHO DOES THE RULE OF LAW APPLY TO?

The easy answer is everyone. Well, every human. Every human is seen as equal under the law meaning that no one has more or less rights than the other. No person is more or less protected by the law than others. 

So why would any government agree to this? Why would the rulers be willing to give so much freedom to their citizens. The answer is history. We know what happens when they don’t. To understand that better, lets look at France 1789-1799. A period we now call the French Revolution.

Prior to the revolution, the people of France lived under a system called Feudalism. You can read the Wikipedia page about feudalism but it boils down to this. It was a system in which all the land was owned by a few people, called Lords. All the work was done by peasants who were given a place to live in exchange for their work.

The peasants grew to believe the lords of the land, or landlords, had more rights  than they, the peasants, did. Which was a problem. One of many. Let’s look at a few of the key reasons behind the French Revolution.

1. Poverty - The feudal system had created unsustainable income inequality. This led to widespread famine, death and starvation. The average person was not sure where their next meal was coming from. At the same time, the upper class lived a lavish lifestyle.  
   
   
2. Royal Absolutism – Those in power, the royals, could overrule any law. In effect, a crime was not a crime if the royals said it was not a crime. Which meant that members of the royal family could do anything they wanted. While peasants were held accountable for minor infractions. Like stealing food to live.
   
   
3. Noble Privilege – Social preference was given to those of high birth rather than to those who worked hard. It didn’t matter how hard you worked, only who your parents were. No amount of hard work would bring you wealth.
   
   
4. Clerical Privilege – We forget now the POWER the Church once held over people. The fear of eternal damnation and/or torture can be persuasive. During the revolution, the church was essentially taken over by the government, and made accountable to the people, not the Vatican. Once upon a time, the church was above the law. If you were a priest you could do anything you wanted and face no consequences. Thankfully that’s different now.
   
   
5. Bifurcation - The final straw was a bifurcation – humans were placed into one of two groups. You were either the working class, a peasant, or the ruling class, a landlord. This created two levels of person-hood. While the rule of law applied to all persons, maybe some humans weren’t people. Because if you can convince enough peasants that a certain group of humans are not “people”, well then you don’t have to follow the rule of law. 

Faced with the evidence of their eyes and ears, the peasants realized the wealthy had taken advantage of them. And if they didn’t act, the peasant’s children had no future. They rose up. It was messy. 

Messy.

This is why it is so important for civilizations to follow the rule of law. If the general population believes those in power are not following the rule of law, they stop following the rule of law too. It is essential for the stability of democracy that everyone BELIEVES the rule of law is in effect.

HISTORICAL EXEMPTIONS TO THE RULE OF LAW

Earlier, I asked if an alien robbed your store, could you charge him with robbery? The answer is no. Our laws currently only apply to humans. For the same reason, if a squirrel eats the apples in your backyard, you don’t call the police. You take the law into your own hands. You throw a rock at it.

Historically, there have been other groups, aside from aliens, that were seen as not human and therefore not protected by the rule of law. Let’s look at a few examples.

Indigenous People

How could followers of Christ take children from their homes, assault them and neglect them all while believing they were doing God’s work. If they children were seen as human, this would never have happened. Instead they were labeled “savages”, a dehumanizing word. Literally a word that makes a human into a non-human.

When we teach our society that a group of people, like Indigenous people around the world, are less than us, less educated, less civilized, less worthy, it sends a message to certain people. Certain people hear that since this group is not-quite-human, they are fair game. 

It is against the law to unalive a human. The racial background of that human should have zero impact on the degree to which the crime is investigated. And yet Canada has a problem. Indigenous people, especially indigenous women are not statistically safe in Canada. That’s not a judgement call. That is looking at reality. Because the way Canadian society reacts when an indigenous person is unalived is very different than when a non-indigenous person is unalived. We can all see that. The evidence is right there. So maybe instead of pretending it’s not, we should be doing something about that.

Let’s look at another group that the law historically did not protect.

Women

October 18, 1928. That is the day women in Canada were finally considered “persons”. We celebrate that it’s been less than 100 years that we men have acknowledge that women are also sentient beings. 

This is not something to celebrate. Math states women make up roughly 50% of humanity. Sometimes they are the majority. Which means for most of written history, more than half of humanity was not fully protected by the rule of law. 

It was not until 1960 that all women could vote? The last group of women given the right to vote? Indigenous women. I know. Shocking.

In 1971, we passed a law in Canada guaranteeing women the right to equal pay for equal work. That’s the year I was born in so I can tell you it has 52 years and women as STILL not paid equally for equal work. It’s almost like the law isn’t being followed.

Much of the reason for the subjugation of women was the Church. Society deemed them not equal to men because the bible said it was true. And if you disagree with the bible, you are demon. Men were doing nothing wrong. They were only following God’s will. Remember, this podcast deals with gaslighting. Phew.

Now, let’s look at another group of humans historically not seen as people.

African Americans/Canadians

Me.

Me as a black person, with one black parent and one white parent. There are many people in the world who do not see me as human. I am abomination, and not just because I’m gay. Many believe that people with my colour of skin are not human, that having a relationship with a black person is like having a relationship with a dog.

In fact, for many if they had to choose between saving the life of a black stranger or a dog they’ve never met, they would save the dog. And see nothing wrong with that choice. Because the dog, to them, is more human.

Lynching only became a federal crime in March 2022. It hasn’t even been two years. Mostly this was symbolic. But think for a second. Until a few years ago, some states would not publicly concede that lynching should be a crime.

And ya’all expect black people to believe they are truly protected by the rule of law? 

You expect women to believe they will be fully recognized and compensated for their work when Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie are still in the news?

Here’s where it starts to play with your sense of who you are and what you are. If a group of people is not protected by the rule of law, why would they follow the rule of law? Let’s say that a different way.

An alien walks into the Miami Mall and buys a dress. As soon as he leaves the store, you say he stole it. The law sees you as a human and alien is not. Therefore, the human must always be right. The alien must be lying. The alien goes to jail. 

After his, why would the alien try buying from the store again? He might as well steal it if you’re going to be blamed for stealing anyway.

Why do people ignore the rule of law? Almost always – Greed. Sadly, there are standard ways around the rule of law. They are often very effective. 

For example, let’s say you are person in power and you want something. Say, land. If a group of people has something you want, you can’t just go take it. That’s against the law. But, and hear me out, what if you can convince enough followers that one group of people aren’t people after all? They are “savages” who must be saved and brought into the light. You’re doing them a favour by stealing their children. God’s work.

Or you say women can’t decide what to do with their bodies because they are women. You know how women are. Overly emotional. They need a man to come in and take charge with his big logical brain. It says so in the Bible. God’s work.

Historically, when people come together to overturn the rule of law, it has not been good. Especially for minorities. Imagine if everyone came together tomorrow and said lefthanded people are evil. Only right-handed people are allowed to accumulate wealth. Maybe the majority would say yes. Lefthanded people would be condemned to poverty because of the will of the majority.

Let’s take it further. The church gives Lefthanded people a name. Sinisters. Did you know the term sinister comes from the latin word for left? And did you know that darkest form of magic is called the Lefthanded path? What are left-handed people hiding? 

Do I need to continue? We can laugh a bit today because we know it’s silly to believe there is a difference between right and left handed people. But it wasn’t that long ago humans felt very different. There are many alive today who remember the ruler across the fingers for trying to write with their left hand.

There are also many are alive today who remember a time when women could not open a bank account or get a credit card. Many old grey men remember they could assault their wives and children without consequence. They could smack the uppity boy with the dark skin and everyone would understand. Those men are still here. They are still in power.

And that needs to change. But I’ll move on.

The second you see one group dehumanizing another, stop. Ask yourself why. Why are they are making the other group appear less than human.

Because they can’t call them what they really are:

An inconvenient obstacle in their attempt to ignore the rule of law.

The most important thing for the stability of a civilization is the appearance that the rule of law is in effect. Because once enough people believe that the system is rigged, that the system doesn’t protect them, when enough people believe THAT … we have problems with social stability. A reminder of the events that caused the French Revolution.

1. Poverty
2. Royal Absolutism
3. Noble Privilege 
4. Clerical Privilege
5. People vs. The Rulers

I’m not trying to predict the future here. Just pointing out historical events. You can draw your own conclusions.

ALTERNATIVES TO THE RULE OF LAW

The rule of Law is not the only way to organize society. Let’s look at a few other options.

1. ANARCHY – every person for themselves. Without the rule of law the world could devolve into a post-apocalyptic nightmare. If you’ve seen or played The Last of Us, this would be life outside of a protected city. The law is what the strong say it is.
   
   
2. DIVINE RIGHT OF KINGS – In this case, a ruler or group of rulers, convinces peasants that he has been chosen by god. Everything they say and do is interpreted as the will of the divine. To challenge the king is to challenge God, making you under the influence of demons. Because only a demon would question the will of God.
   
   Speaking of men who abuse women and believe they speak for God, Trump. FFS. History is very clear what happens to a society when a man like Trump gets unlimited power. Can we seriously not let that happen? But I’ll move on.
   
   
3. PLUTOCRACY – It has nothing to do with the planet and everything to do with money. Pluto is another name for the god of the underworld. Also called Hades. Hades is the more common name now, but in ancient times people grew afraid to say his name. Like Voldermort.  So they called him Pluto, the wealthy one.
   
   Under Plutocracy, the law and those that enforce it treat you differently depending on how much money you have. The more money you have, the more you can ignore the law. That means that with enough money, the rule of law does not apply to you.
   
   
4. MOB RULE –A group of people decides to take the law into their own hands. The law is whatever the group says is the law. It can change at any time.

WHAT SYSTEM DO WE CURRENTLY LIVE UNDER?

So, do we currently live under the rule of law? The answer depends on where you live. And who you are. Which means, no. We do not currently live under the rule of law. In my opinion, we live in a plutocracy where those with the most money can do whatever they want. They do not have to follow the law. Even if they are caught, they will be forced to pay a fine. But they have so much money, they fine is not a disincentive. No matter what the powerful do, they do not have to go to jail. Jail is only for poor people.

I would love to proven wrong. But I can see reality. We all can. 

We need to stop pretending everything is okay.

So what do we do about it? We fix it. How? Simple. Hold the powerful to account. That’s it. We need at least the appearance of fair play. Because if the powerful stop pretending the rule of law is in effect, my fear is so will the rest of the country. And that won’t be good for anyone.

We do not currently live under the rule of law but we STRIVE TO. The law is not perfect but it is the best tool we have to ensure a safe, stable democracy.

RULE OF LAW AND YOUR IDENTITY

So what does all of this have to do with you? You have grown up in a system which clearly demonstrates some people have more rights than others. Our educational system, our political system, and especially our religious systems have all created a world in which certain people are closer to god than others. If you grew up here, those thoughts are in your brain, influencing the way you think and they things you do. 

In many ways, you are who you THINK you are. And some of the things you think about yourself are not really you. Some of your personality is based on your culture and your upbringing. You may not see the difference but it can show up in your biology. Oppression and trauma show up in our bodies, even if we are not conscious of it.

Some of you may have seen this image. It represents the order in which we secure a health environment. Meaning before you can manifest your biggest dreams, you have to make sure you have food and shelter. If you can’t eat, you can’t start a business. Similarly, before you gain a sense of connection, you have to feel safe in your environment. You need stable employment which gives you the power to create all the other steps.

So what if you don’t feel safe? If you are constantly worried about your physiological and economic safety, kind of hard for you to reach self esteem.

That is what we have done to indigenous people, to women, to visible minorities. And, as we’ll discuss later, those with disabilities. And IT IS intentional. Because the people running the plutocracy know this. As soon as the peasants come together, it’s all over for them. Which is why they want the peasants to keep fighting amongst themselves. But I’ll move on.

How does this fear show up in your body? I’m going to show you a graphic that will annoy some people. But stay with me. Remember, not everything can currently be explained by science. 

Chakra work is magic, not science. Remember, with science, something is true whether you believe it or not. Magic needs you to believe it before work.

In my experience, chakras in the body tend to align with the hierarchy of needs. Anxiety is a first chakra issue. Anxiety is often tied to trauma related to unfulfilled security needs. If people can’t secure housing and food, you can expect anxiety rates to increase. Anxiety can be reduced by ensuring all physical needs are met.

If you’re experiencing lower back pain, look at your money situation. 

Science says chakras do not exist because we don’t have the technology to test if they exist or not. Our currently technology can’t see them. But maybe our bodies can. 

Unless you’ve done a lot of self-analysis, you probably don’t realize why you feel the way you feel. That’s who you are. An anxious person. Maybe you feel guilty because of your anxiety, even though anxiety is a perfectly normal reaction when you’re living through the times we’re in. Maybe you are not the problem. 

I’ll end with this. The most revolutionary act you can do is not taking to the streets or arguing on social media. If you want to change the world, start by changing yourself.

Sit in a quiet room by yourself. Meditate. Think about the things you do and the things you believe and the things you don’t believe. Get to know yourself.

The more you understand who YOU are, the real you, the most clearly you will see what you should be doing. And once you know yourself, it’s impossible for other people to manipulate you.

NEXT TIME

Next Time on Alien Brain Fog we look at Tribalism. Why do we feel the need to attach ourselves to a collective? Why and how do our brains assign people we meet into groups? And more importantly, how can we determine if our actions and beliefs are based on our own individual sense of right and wrong or a desire to remain part of the collective.

Thank you for joining me. Be kind. The world is a little messed up out there.

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