{"id":6318,"date":"2025-03-24T08:30:11","date_gmt":"2025-03-24T12:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/?p=6318"},"modified":"2025-03-24T08:34:45","modified_gmt":"2025-03-24T12:34:45","slug":"so-sue-me-or-the-federal-government","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2025\/03\/24\/so-sue-me-or-the-federal-government\/","title":{"rendered":"So Sue Me (or the Federal Government)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The right to sue the federal government (or, technically anyone) is RIGHT THERE <\/strong>in the FIRST AMENDMENT <\/strong>– the same one that grants people the right to say stupid shit online also explicitly grants the right to “petition the government for a redress of grievances.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A lawsuit is just a formal petition for the government (via the courts) to help settle a dispute (aka “redress our grievances”). I mean, it’s right there in the name – one of the most common types of court documents is called a “petition.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is like civics 101 here, I can’t believe we need to be re-stating this shit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And there is historical precedent for this, going way, way, waaaaay back – I’m talking like 1688<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

And yet it cannot be pretended, that any Kings, how great soever their Power has been, and how arbitrary and despotick soever they have been in the Exercise of it, have ever reckoned it a Crime for their Subjects to come, in all Submission and Respect, and in a due Number not exceeding the Limits of the Law, and represent to them the Reasons that made it impossible for them to obey their Orders.<\/em>“<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Or, to translate this to modern English: “no king, not even the really shitty and tyrannical ones, has ever made it a crime for people to come (in an orderly fashion, not in an angry mob) and tell them that their laws and orders are bullshit.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In other words, telling people they can’t sue the government is worse than the worst of kings going all the way back to well before the United States even existed<\/em>. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“Congress shall make no law abridging the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"webmentions_disabled_pings":false,"webmentions_disabled":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"activitypub_content_warning":"uspol","activitypub_content_visibility":"","activitypub_max_image_attachments":3,"activitypub_interaction_policy_quote":"anyone","activitypub_status":"federated","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2,17],"tags":[589,588,88,385,392],"class_list":["post-6318","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","category-society","tag-bill-of-rights","tag-civics","tag-constitution","tag-politics","tag-society","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pimUj-1DU","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1040,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2008\/02\/06\/effects-of-real-id\/","url_meta":{"origin":6318,"position":0},"title":"Effects of REAL ID","author":"Keith Survell","date":"February 6, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"C|NET News has a great writeup on what the effects of REAL ID are going to be to people in different states - depending on whether your state has complied or not. There are some SERIOUS problems here of course - for example, you may not be able to go\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "politics"","block_context":{"text":"politics","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/category\/politics\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5282,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2019\/05\/16\/a-mini-rant-on-presidents\/","url_meta":{"origin":6318,"position":1},"title":"A Mini-Rant on Presidents","author":"Keith Survell","date":"May 16, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"A mini rant on what \"the President\" actually means, since so many people seem to have forgotten.","rel":"","context":"In "politics"","block_context":{"text":"politics","link":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/category\/politics\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":150,"url":"https:\/\/www.starkeith.net\/coredump\/2004\/06\/27\/what-ive-been-talking-about\/","url_meta":{"origin":6318,"position":2},"title":"What I’ve Been Talking About!","author":"Keith Survell","date":"June 27, 2004","format":"quote","excerpt":"\"The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the forces of the Crown. 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