... 1979 states: If political leaders and police chiefs had their way, all of us would believe that a powerful reason (possibly the principle, if not the only, reason) that we should obey a law is that it is a law. In fact, with the exception of a special class of laws, it is no reason at all. This is the core of discussion whether there is a general moral obligation to obey the law. This discussion started in the 1970's in the United States. The background to it was the civil rights movement in the United States, and the Vietnam War with its political scandals. People who disagreed with the governments' policies started arguing that sometimes, a citizen is justified in acting illegally. The question is: does a citizen have a moral duty to obey the law and if so, why? In the writings of Honoré, Raz, Smith, Finnis and Bix ...

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