democracy and the rule of law

Well, another day, another scholarly work crossed off on the list of papers to peruse. The latest conquest is <--this book here, Democracy and the Rule of Law, a series of papers written by men smarter than me about the constancy of the law and the relationship between the majority being able to do what they want (aka democracy) and their collective will being limited in the scope of its action so as to respect individual rights, social norms, etc. (aka the rule of law). So it talks about what happens in a society when judges are independent but not neutral and the effect that judicialization on politics has on society, the difference between a rule of law and a rule by law, and it also talks about the balances of democracy and the rule of law and how that is perpetuated or destabilized. I wanted to read it because I believe the constancy of the law is a must for any free and liberal society to exist, but this book highlighted that the rule of law was not always a benefit (think about a rule of bad law). So it opened my eyes a bit. I would recommend chapters of the book to those interested, but not the entire book. Let's face it, sometimes even to the dedicated these books can get pretty boring.

Some quotes,

"....laws indicate to citizens when to act against governments. By coordinating expectations they facilitate collective actions that impose sanctions on governments."

"....the constitution matters not because governments feel a duty to obey it. Rather, it servs as a focal device, enabling particular individuals to guess what others will consider as major transgressions and thus agree when to act."

"We are in the presence of the rule of law when the rules defining permitted and forbidden actions are not discretionary decisions of an individual, but rather take the form of laws that discipline every citizen, regardless of his or her power or status....the problem with the rule of law derives from the difficulties subjects have in making those who rule obey the law."

and my personal favorite

"This is the art of politics: to find some alternative that beats the current winner."