The Law

<h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 22px; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0.75em 0px 0px; position: relative;"> The Law</h3> <div class="post-header" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; margin: 0px 0px 1.5em;"> <div class="post-header-line-1"> </div> </div> <div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-4265851239922198439" itemprop="description articleBody" style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; position: relative; width: 570px;"> <div class="group-left col-xs-4 col-xs-4 col-xs-4" style="box-sizing: border-box; clear: left; color: #494e54; float: left; font-family: myriad-pro, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; min-height: 1px; padding-left: 10px; padding-right: 10px; position: relative; width: 237.765625px;"> <div class="image img-responsive border-secondary" style="border-top-color: rgb(56, 112, 158); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 8px; box-sizing: border-box; height: auto; margin-top: 5px; max-width: 100%;"> <img alt="The Law by Frédéric Bastiat" height="165" src="https://mises.org/sites/default/files/styles/list_teaser/public/static-page/img/The%20Law_Bastiat_750x516_20160916.jpg?itok=ZqTrenlL" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0980392) 1px 1px 5px; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0980392) 1px 1px 5px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px; vertical-align: middle; width: 217.765625px;" title="The Law by Frédéric Bastiat" typeof="foaf:Image" width="240" /></div> <div class="tags" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #788086; font-size: 11px; padding-top: 5px;"> <span class="tag-label bold" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 600; padding-right: 5px; text-transform: uppercase;">TAGS</span>&nbsp;<span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://mises.org/topics/legal-system" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #788086; text-decoration: none;">Legal System</a></span><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://mises.org/austrian-school/philosophy-and-methodology" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #788086; text-decoration: none;">Philosophy and Methodology</a></span><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://mises.org/austrian-school/political-theory" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #788086; text-decoration: none;">Political Theory</a></span><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://mises.org/austrian-school/private-property" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #788086; text-decoration: none;">Private Property</a></span></div> </div> <div class="group-right col-xs-8 col-xs-8" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #494e54; float: left; font-family: myriad-pro, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; min-height: 1px; padding-left: 10px; padding-right: 0px; position: relative; width: 475.546875px;"> <h2 class="teaser-title" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #00426b; font-family: crimson_text, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 23px; line-height: 1.1; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px; position: relative; vertical-align: top;"> <a href="https://mises.org/library/law-0" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #38709e; text-decoration: none;">The Law</a></h2> <div class="group-date-author" style="box-sizing: border-box;"> <span class="date" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #00426b; font-weight: 600; text-transform: uppercase;">OCTOBER 9, 2008</span><span class="author" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><a href="https://mises.org/profile/claude-fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric-bastiat" rel="author" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #00426b; text-decoration: none;">Claude Frédéric Bastiat</a></span></div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 12.5px;"> Bastiat's​&nbsp;timeless essay applies whenever and wherever the state assumes unto itself different rules and different laws from that by which it expects other people to live.</div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 12.5px;"> The question that Bastiat deals with: how to tell when a law is unjust or when the law maker has become a source of law breaking? When the law becomes a means of plunder it has lost its character of genuine law. When the law enforcer is permitted to do with others’ lives and property what would be illegal if the citizens did them, the law becomes perverted.</div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 12.5px;"> Narrated by Floy Lilley.</div> <div style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-bottom: 12.5px;"> <a href="http://mp3.anarchistphilosophies.com/thelaw.mp3" style="background-color: #38709e; background-image: none; border-bottom-left-radius: 5px; border-bottom-right-radius: 5px; border-color: rgb(56, 112, 158); border-top-left-radius: 5px; border-top-right-radius: 5px; box-sizing: border-box; color: white; cursor: pointer; display: inline-block; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.25; margin-bottom: 0px; padding: 6px 10px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: middle; white-space: nowrap;" title="The Law Frederic Bastiat.mp3" type="audio/mpeg; length=55687153">Download audio file</a></div> <div class="read-more" style="box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-size: 13px; text-transform: uppercase;"> <a href="https://mises.org/library/law-0" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #788086; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;">READ MORE</a></div> </div> </div>