It is almost impossible now to live as a law-abiding citizen.

We are told that ‘ignorance of the law is no excuse’. What if you cannot keep up with the changing law? Secular morality changes with every new phase of political correctness. Can you keep up with the changing law and the changing ‘woke’ standards on social media? Should one use colour or black, and will it be the same next year?

The problem has been highlighted by the regular changing of regulations with the 2020 coronavirus pandemic precautions, but the problem is long standing. It accelerated with the growing number of laws from the EU when the UK was a member.

First, do you know the law in order to keep on the right side of it? Even J. K. Rowling needs a lawyer simply to tweet. What about the rest of us?

Nowadays, one needs to have a lawyer at one’s elbow. Who can say when someone will take offence at what you say and bring the Thought Police to your door?

There was a day when one could live comfortably as a law-abiding citizen but now one might lose one’s job if one says the wrong thing according to the changing standards of our woke society. Yesterday’s orthodoxy is today’s heresy.

Tax laws are so complicated that an accountant is often necessary to fill in one’s Tax Return. Similarly, lawyers are needed for more and more things, not simply buying property, granting Powers of Attorney for future incapacity and making a Will for one’s death. For some, lawyers are part of their life because they use them and accountants to show them how to avoid tax. They pay for themselves. However, the rest of us will soon be using lawyers just to live our lives.

Middle-income citizens

Why should the ordinary citizen pay accountants simply to ensure that the Government does not take away too much tax? Why does the Government take more from us that it is due? The law-abiding citizen needs money simply to pay his taxes. Tax law needs to be simplified for the ordinary man.

Free speech

Free speech is under threat and if one does not know the latest politically correct phraseology – bending the knee, black or coloured – one may have to pay for it with money, one’s job or one’s reputation, and even one’s liberty in extreme cases.

This is the price paid for losing Christianity from our society. People do not know how to live at peace with their neighbour. From aggressive driving on the road, pushing their neighbour aside in order get ahead, ignoring traffic laws and other public examples of general misbehaviour, our aggressive society is developing into an intolerant one, courtesy of angry aggression and the absence of a sense of accountability to God.

“The wrath of man does not accomplish the righteousness of God” James 1:20.

“Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”

Jesus Christ.

Is Britain a free society?

You could ask Julian Assange, but he is locked away without charged in a maximum security prison in Britain.

The Secret Barrister tells us that justice is a hit-and-miss affair in Britain. This book is about criminal law, but I am writing my own book about the issues in civil law. Most law-abiding citizens do not come into contact with criminal law, but more and more civil law is transforming into criminal law and ordinary law-abiding citizens will discover that they law-breakers.

Why should the ordinary citizen have to pay lawyers simply to maintain their rights? We need a National Justice Service.

Welcome to an ungodly society that has abandoned God, or rather…?

Rather, come and welcome to Jesus Christ, Who will reward you appropriately for your service.

Update:

22 Dec 2020: this post is not even one hour old but I learned that Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has broken her own Government’s law! “I rest my case, m’lord.”

24 Dec 2020: two cases of conscience. 1. a dentist leaves London and travels to Inverness and self-isolates. Is this a breach of the law? 2. a minister from Edinburgh travels to Easter Ross to conduct a funeral, joined by a minister from Ayrshire, and the congregation sings lustily without face masks. Is this a breach of the law? Answers on a postcard.

12 Jan 2021: the Metropolitan Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick has called it “preposterous” that people should not know the law about coronavirus restrictions, but the Prime Minister’s cycle through the park seven miles away has raised debate whether he stayed ‘local to Downing Street’. The point is that reasonable people have different opinions and it confirms my general point in this blogpost. Covid-19 restrictions are simply an illustration of what is generally true through the whole of society. The law and law enforcment are being brought into disrepute by too many laws and by an overbearing attitude of law enforcers. Cycling and driving one’s car is effectively ‘a bubble’ extension of one’s home – is this too sensible for our law-enforcers to understand? Scottish policing has been more sensible but this response by Scottish police is very disturbing.

20 Mar 2021: it could be a part of any defence that the private citizen cannot be expected to keep up with the changing law of the land, which is why ‘one strike and you are out’ is unjust.  However, Police Scotland adopt the Four E’s approach: 1. engage with the public; 2. explain; 3. encourage compliance; 4. enforcement compliance.  Until someone engages and explains one cannot know modern law.  I could give several examples. The advantage of a blog, and of social media, is that one can remove material when it is shown to be faulty or breaching copyright, whereas the printed page is another matter.

30 Dec 2022 middle-income earners are being hit as usual.