On the Accountability of Authority

 - Katyana Jaidov
   
Authority, and its proper delegation, is a fundamental requirement of a civilized society. Without it, anarchy reins. And while it is certainly possible to envision an anarchistic society, it is impossible to imagine one in which philosophy, science, engineering and industry can flourish and advance. Conceding that there are those who think that this would not be a bad thing, the rest of us who value civilization must come to terms with authority, its purposes and dangers.
  

The purpose of authority, at least in the political sense to which we refer here, is to enforce those laws and rules of behavior which a people, in forming a society, deem just and necessary. "That government is best which governs least," said American political theorist and President Thomas Jefferson. But that government which governs not at all cannot long exist. So there is a balance that must be struck. Too much power and authority in the hands of governments and their agents and we have Fascism, where people exist to serve the State. Too little and we have Anarchy, where orderly progress and prosperity cannot be sustained and life becomes tribal.. In between we have a wide range of possibilities.
   

“All authority belongs to the people," Jefferson also said. But people have lives to live, and the daily tasks and responsibilities of which living is comprised to attend to. And so they delegate authority to governments, that it might act on their behalf and in accordance with their wishes. The problem arises when the perception becomes reversed. When people stop seeing government as their servant and begin, in the name of order, security, laziness or any of the countless uncertainties and fears with which the world brims, to see government as their savior, benefactor, guarantor and, ultimately, beneficent master. "Leave no authority existing not responsible to the people," Jefferson wisely advised.
   

As one example of what this means to us, Berliners, we need look no farther than the behavior of the Municipal Police. Let us be clear. The Police have an important and difficult job to do. And most times they do it professionally and well. Without them we would all suffer. But we also suffer from the near total lack of accountability of the Police force to the citizens of the City they are intended to protect. Too often the Police manufacture "laws" that do not exist. Cite charges that are spurious and would never stand the light of trail. The notorious Roberts case comes to mind, where the charges were so false, and the actions of the Police so indefensible, that neither the prosecutor nor the Police even showed up to defend the actions in open court. “He who establishes his argument by noise and command shows that his reason is weak,” the French philosopher Michel de Montaigne has said. Too often the Police do as they please simply because they please. And because they are never held accountable for their errors. How does one justify shooting a prisoner in a police cell simply because those same police were too incompetent to effectively search the prisoner for a weapon before jailing him? When they are never held accountable for their actions, no justification is needed.
   

Ultimately, however, the Police are not to blame for this. All human beings, placed in potions of power, become abusers of that power if left unconstrained and unaccountable. Another American, the great scientist, diplomat and politician Benjamin Franklin, famously warned, "Those who would sacrifice a little freedom in exchange for a little security deserve neither and will lose both." If we want our government to serve us well, fairly and competently, then we much each hold those in power accountable for their actions (or lack of them). Vote, every time. Know the law, and expect it to be followed. Even by those who are entrusted to enforce it. Especially by them. Stand up for your rights, and the rights of others. Go to court. Speak up and speak out, without empty slogans or violence. And do it now, while you are still able.
   

"Truth is the daughter of time, not of authority." - Francis Bacon