In the 1760's American dissatisfaction with English rule helped to popularize the phrase, "No Taxation without Representation." Today in America, we are faced with a new tyranny; activist judges. An activist judge is a judge who tends to ignore U.S. laws and legal precedences in favor of their own personal or political views. In most cases these judges tend to favor the liberal progressive political view.

In U.S. and European common law, rulings are supposed to be based on the interpretation of a law. Since lawyers make a living by challenging the interpretation of laws we have trials to argue and judge on the merits of a persons desired interpretation. The results of these court cases sets a precedence. Traditionally, a judge will use the precedences established by previous cases to judge the merits of any arguments of a similar case. This is the way our legal system has worked since it was first established.

The problem arises because an activist judge will either just ignore previous cases in order to set their own precedence, or they will use the laws and customs of another country as an excuse for their ruling. That is why I accuse activist judges of making judicial decisions without representation. You see in the balance of power within our society, the elected representatives create the laws. The executive branch approves and signs the law, and the judicial branch is to interpret the law. But the judges interpretation is supposed to be based on U.S. laws and customs. Not the laws and customs of a foreign entity. After all, did we vote for Fidel Castro to be the dictator of Cuba? Did we vote for French legislatures and executives? Did we have a say in the creation of Sharia law? No, of course not!

So why is it that more and more, judges are imposing decisions based on foreign law? The answer is simple. If a judge has a particular set of personal or political beliefs, and they want to impose those beliefs on their court decisions, they will look for a source to justify their ruling. If the majority of U.S. citizens disagree with the judges beliefs, if case lqw doesn't support the decision, then the judge will find some other country that is more aligned with their own views as a source for their decision. Thus imposing the laws of another country on us.

We need to stop this practice of activist judges. A judge in the U.S. should make their decision based on U.S. laws and customs. If they want to change those laws, then they can support representatives, and political groups that will promote his views. If there are enough representatives that agree with that view, then they can create laws to support it.

That is the way our government is supposed to work.

- Thomas Paine 2

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