How far would you go without the law?

Eoin247

So a lord of the flies type scenario here. How far would you go if there were no repercussions for your actions? Is there somebody you know you would beat to a pulp or even kill? Would you steal, rape, create a criminal empire or just do drugs all day?

I think that without the law, I might have killed somebody by this stage. I might regret it afterwards even though i wouldn't be punished, but i can get very annoyed at people at times and without the fear of jail...

I put some general options into the poll (which is anonymous i think), but go ahead and state your sick deluded crime in the thread anyway if you want.

wazky

I wouldn't pay my dog license.

The Backwards Man

I don't base my decision-making on the law.

I base it on my conscience.

Links234

haha, screw you TV license! :pac: and up yours RTE, up all of yours!

BetterThanThou

Would definitely have beaten a few people, though, not to death or near death, just a few broken limbs at most. As far as drugs are concerned, I doubt I'd have any interest in any of them, in fact I feel I'd have even less interest than I do now.
Most other laws I'd abide by anyway, if I drove I'd probably speed, but only when I'm not putting anyone else at risk.

LOSTfan57

I would kill everyone and elect myself king of Ireland then the World #booyeah

smcgiff

It's my own sense of right and wrong that guides me. I'm glad there are laws there for other people, be they religious or judicial.

So, I'd not care about the law if they were in conflict with my morals.

looking_around

LOSTfan57 wrote: »

I would kill everyone and elect myself king of Ireland then the World #booyeah

Back to twitter with you!

___
If there was no law, society as we know it would not exist and morality would be quite different, when it come to survival.

How far would I go?
As far as I needed to survive.

ScumLord

Eoin247 wrote: »

So a lord of the flies type scenario here. How far would you go if there were no repercussions for your actions?

There are always repercussions. Without the law those repercussions would be severe too, it would be the start up of blood feuds again.

Tiddlypeeps

Is this a scenario where it's always been anarchy? Or has something catastrophic just happened that has caused anarchy?

If the latter then I would try my best to avoid doing anything bad to anyone else as long as I didn't absolutely have too.

If the former then I've no idea, it's hard to say what kind of morals are ingrained in people and which are a result of upbringing.

I can't imagine any scenario where this would go on for any extended period of time before communities would start to come together and form laws and means of policing them. That's not why I wouldn't want to hurt anyone unless I have to tho, I just don't derive any pleasure from such things.

wretcheddomain

Eoin247 wrote: »

I think that without the law, I might have killed somebody by this stage.

Are you seriously suggesting the only thing that stops you committing a crime is the law against it? The law is currently impeding you when it should in fact be viewed as something everyone regards as self-evident.

This is evidently the scale of intellectual discussion that you'd find in Westmeath.

Delirium

LOSTfan57 wrote: »

I would kill everyone and elect myself king of Ireland then the World #booyeah

If you kill everyone, why do you have to elect yourself? :P

Muahahaha

Poll needs an 'All of the above option'

SV

ha@morality.


robbings and beatings would be up there. Maybe both at the same time.

RoboRat

I would pay a visit to my scumbag brother in law and see how he likes to be bullied. Sorry excuse for a human spends his life hiding behind the law whilst psychologically tormenting my sister. Thankfully we got her away but it gnaws at me that I have never had the chance to give him some retribution for the damage he done to my sister.

Dubl07

Laws, like taxes, are only applicable to the hoi polloi.

#bertie

Eoin247

Muahahaha wrote: »

Poll needs an 'All of the above option'

It's a multiple choice poll

mad muffin

I would walk the earth.

LOSTfan57

koth wrote: »

If you kill everyone, why do you have to elect yourself? :P

You shall be first victim

BlatentCheek

ScumLord wrote: »

There are always repercussions. Without the law those repercussions would be severe too, it would be the start up of blood feuds again.

Exactly, in the absence of laws people would enforce their own justice, and it would be far rougher. Think PIRA style punishment beatings and kneecappings, only several times worse.

Muise...

this far.

Capt'n Midnight

Eoin247 wrote: »

I think that without the law, I might have killed somebody by this stage. I might regret it afterwards even though i wouldn't be punished, but i can get very annoyed at people at times and without the fear of jail...

I think that without the law you'd have been killed by somebody at this stage.

your thinking is like a lot of post- apocalypse SciFi where the nerd becomes the macho hero rising above a wasteland of mutants and isn't affected by radiation

rwg

I voted for them all just to make a point you should never use tick boxes in a poll

Spring Onion

It's a slippery slope...

rolliepoley

Eoin247 wrote: »

I think that without the law, I might have killed somebody by this stage. I might regret it afterwards even though i wouldn't be punished, but i can get very annoyed at people at times and without the fear of jail...

Anger management for you.

UCDVet

I would engage in additional recreational drugs, other than the government run tobacco/alcohol/pharmaceuticals but that's about it.

I'd also only donate money to services I deemed worthy, instead of being forced to pay taxes as dictated by a bunch of rich people.

But that's about it.

rwg

UCDVet wrote: »

I would engage in additional recreational drugs, other than the government run tobacco/alcohol/pharmaceuticals but that's about it.

I'd also only donate money to services I deemed worthy, instead of being forced to pay taxes as dictated by a bunch of rich people.

But that's about it.

A charitable drug addict

AlanS181824

If there we no laws I probably wouldn't change or do anything different... Actually I'd go 51 in a 50 zone, would need to learn to drive first... Yeah I'm a rebel.

Kev.OC

I'm in the middle of re-watching Firefly. I like to think that without the law I'd be like the characters in that show. Honourable outlaws.

thecatspjs

Would anyone still go to work?

I probably would. Somebody has to keep the economy ticking over while you savages are out pillaging and raping.

I wouldn't "go" anywhere

thecatspjs

bluewolf wrote: »

I wouldn't "go" anywhere

What are you implying exactly?

Pai Mei

It's kinda disturbing that some people said they would rape someone if it wasn't illegal.

anncoates

Pai Mei wrote: »

It's kinda disturbing that some people said they would rape someone if it wasn't illegal.

Only consolation is that their victims could in turn blow their heads off.

poundapunnet

Pai Mei wrote: »

It's kinda disturbing that some people said they would rape someone if it wasn't illegal.

I'd imagine they thought they were being funny.

Don't think I'd personally change my behaviour too much purely just because there was no law, but presumably in a situation where there was no law there'd be no electricity, no food in the shops, no phone networks, so I think we'd all get down to robbing and beating sharpish enough. Nine meals from anarchy and all that.

thecatspjs

thecatspjs wrote: »

What are you implying exactly?

The question was how far would you go
I wouldn't go very far

Business as usual

poundapunnet wrote: »

I'd imagine they thought they were being funny.

Don't think I'd personally change my behaviour too much purely just because there was no law, but presumably in a situation where there was no law there'd be no electricity, no food in the shops, no phone networks, so I think we'd all get down to robbing and beating sharpish enough. Nine meals from anarchy and all that.

Yes, lack of law would immediately revoke physics and barter and trade and all that. Shops only open because they're forced to sell things by law

An Coilean

Eoin247 wrote: »

So a lord of the flies type scenario here. How far would you go if there were no repercussions for your actions? Is there somebody you know you would beat to a pulp or even kill? Would you steal, rape, create a criminal empire or just do drugs all day?

I think that without the law, I might have killed somebody by this stage. I might regret it afterwards even though i wouldn't be punished, but i can get very annoyed at people at times and without the fear of jail...

I put some general options into the poll (which is anonymous i think), but go ahead and state your sick deluded crime in the thread anyway if you want.

I think you would find that a general if informal and not overly complex system of law would develop amongst any group of people quite quickly in such a situation.
There are plenty exmples of small groups of people governing themselves quite effectivly in the absence of formal state legal structures.

Fighting Irish

RoboRat wrote: »

I would pay a visit to my scumbag brother in law and see how he likes to be bullied. Sorry excuse for a human spends his life hiding behind the law whilst psychologically tormenting my sister. Thankfully we got her away but it gnaws at me that I have never had the chance to give him some retribution for the damage he done to my sister.

gimme his address and i promise every time i drive past his house i'll ring his doorbell and run

pragmatic1

I break the law regularly. As long as I'm not hurting other people, the law means very little to me.

poundapunnet

bluewolf wrote: »

The question was how far would you go
I wouldn't go very far

Business as usual



Yes, lack of law would immediately revoke physics and barter and trade and all that. Shops only open because they're forced to sell things by law

Nope, but it's hard to imagine a situation where the rule of law would suddenly cease to exist without that being caused by some cataclysm which caused quite a few societal infrastructures to also collapse, which I thought was obvious from the post but don't let that get in the way of a smart comment. If the law suddenly didn't exist my behaviour wouldn't suddenly change, but in the most likely (still very unlikely) scenario where the law didn't apply, my behaviour would almost certainly have to change.

poundapunnet

poundapunnet wrote: »

Nope, but it's hard to imagine a situation where the rule of law would suddenly cease to exist without that being caused by some cataclysm which caused quite a few societal infrastructures to also collapse, which I thought was obvious from the post but don't let that get in the way of a smart comment. If the law suddenly didn't exist my behaviour wouldn't suddenly change, but in the most likely (still very unlikely) scenario where the law didn't apply, my behaviour would almost certainly have to change.

Well, you just said "a situation with no law", which mean assuming a cataclysm was definitely not clear

poundapunnet

bluewolf wrote: »

Well, you just said "a situation with no law", which mean assuming a cataclysm was definitely not clear

I'm struggling to see how it was the most immediate assumption to think I thought the law controls physics, though yeah, I guess I phrased it badly and left the door open for smartarsery

Also that's not exactly what I said

bitemybanger

This thread reminds me of a film called The Purge which was almost the worst film ive watched in the last decade only topped by Sharknado.

thecatspjs

bluewolf wrote: »

The question was how far would you go
I wouldn't go very far

Ah, apologies. I got my wires crossed there

eternal

Lord of the Flies anyone?

pragmatic1

A world without law, is a world without justice. someone would need to bring it back.

I would become Batman.

pragmatic1 wrote: »

I break the law regularly. As long as I'm not hurting other people, the law means very little to me.

You're first.

catallus

bitemybanger wrote: »

This thread reminds me of a film called The Purge which was almost the worst film ive watched in the last decade only topped by Sharknado.

Sharknado was an honourable attempt at the resurrection of the long lost craft of intelligent narrative-driven cinematic art-work. For it to be mentioned in the same sentence as that dribbling mess which was ThePurge is profane.

A lot of posters on here seem to be bereft of any type of speculative imagination, especially those who say their behaviour wouldn't be changed much by a lack of law. Of course it would.

poundapunnet

Deleted User wrote: »

A world without law, is a world without justice. someone would need to bring it back.

I would become Batman.



You're first.

If the quoted poster is first on the list you're a bad batman! Bad batman you! Bad. I'm batman anyway, feck off.

Yes, been drinking. It's five A-fecking-M. Arse drink girls wahey

MadsL

Normally, both your asses would be dead as fucking fried chicken, but you happen to pull this shit while I'm in a transitional period so I don't wanna kill you.

Pinch Flat

Be like this for me, from Mad Max:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLCmcV4gC_0

HalloweenJack

I'd be far too stoned to be doing anything else.