Entry 37: Civil Disobedience

Under what circumstances do you think it is good to obey authority? When is it okay to disobey? Who do you have to obey? List all the different people or forces that control your actions. Write down as many as you can and describe how they exert control over you. Have you ever disobeyed any of the authority figures you listed? Describe the situation. Why did you choose to disobey? Looking back, do you think it was a good decision?

• Why do people obey to rules? There are several reasons, and I will list some here. The first reason may be to keep peace within the society and the community. The second reason may be to benefit yourself, or to benefit others. So why do people disobey rules then? There have been many cases of crime and disobedience. These cases may have been caused due to unjust rules or unjust actions towards the individual. Who do I have to obey? There following is a list:
• parents
• elders and other older family members
• police
• government
• teachers and instructors
• Parents and elders and other older family members direct life and control me by controlling my way of life. The police and government create rules and laws that I have to obey to keep peace in society and community. Teachers and instructors create rules that will be helpful and beneficial in the future so that we will succeed.
• One example of me disobeying an authoritative figure is when I disobeyed my parents. Everybody has done this before, sometime in their life. I disobeyed them because they were unfair: my mother forced me to go to sleep before I finished my homework for the next day. This is unfair because it will influence my grades. In the end, I disobeyed her and did not go to sleep until I finished my homework for the day. I do not regret my actions and my disobedience, because it allowed me to keep my grades within a certain acceptable standard to me.