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Judges interpret the law. The law and Constitution are not written in C (and even if they were, we all know that every compiler has "undefined behavior" that ma

Judges interpret the law. The law and Constitution are not written in C (and even if they were, we all know that every compiler has "undefined behavior" that may need to be adjudicated) and we occasionally need a court system to resolve disputes and clarify legal ambiguities. If the affected parties believe a judge made an incorrect decision, there exist procedures for appeal or even revisiting the question in a subsequent case. If judges in a jurisdiction are elected, it is the responsibility of the electorate to make sure the judges they select are the most qualified (perhaps by studying previous decisions, academic publications, etc). Analogously, if judges are appointed by other elected officials, it is the responsibility of the electorate to select public servants who are good at appointing competent judges.

gryfft 7y ago
While your statement is technically correct, it does not address the issue.
watwut 7y ago
> Judges interpret the law. That is possible only if you actually know the law. If you do not know it, you cant interpret it. So yes, people are needed to interpret the law, but not really anyone. Kinda like we need programmers, but not really anyone.
- basementcat 7y ago
  It is possible for competent programmers to interpret a vaguely written specification in mutually incompatible ways.
  - kibwen 7y ago
    Yes, although the judges in the OP do not sound analogous to competent programmers in this example. One would expect someone trained in software to interpret software, in the same way one would expect someone trained in law to interpret law.
  - _sid 7y ago
    I find it hard to believe that programmers could disagree with eachother.
StanislavPetrov 7y ago
>If judges in a jurisdiction are elected, it is the responsibility of the electorate to make sure the judges they select are the most qualified (perhaps by studying previous decisions, academic publications, etc). Analogously, if judges are appointed by other elected officials, it is the responsibility of the electorate to select public servants who are good at appointing competent judges. Responsibility is not a zero sum game. Voters and officials who elect and appoint judges are responsible for their actions just as much as judges are responsible for upholding and following the law. While many areas of the law are ambiguous and up to the discretion of the judge to decide, many other areas are well-established and clear cut (such as the illegality of jailing defendants who have not had access to a lawyer). The fact remains that we cannot exist as a society that depends on the rule of law to function if we have judges and other officers of the court who are unwilling or incapable of upholding the law as it exists.

gryfft 7y ago

While your statement is technically correct, it does not address the issue.

watwut 7y ago

> Judges interpret the law. That is possible only if you actually know the law. If you do not know it, you cant interpret it. So yes, people are needed to interpret the law, but not really anyone. Kinda like we need programmers, but not really anyone.

basementcat 7y ago
It is possible for competent programmers to interpret a vaguely written specification in mutually incompatible ways.
- kibwen 7y ago
  Yes, although the judges in the OP do not sound analogous to competent programmers in this example. One would expect someone trained in software to interpret software, in the same way one would expect someone trained in law to interpret law.
- _sid 7y ago
  I find it hard to believe that programmers could disagree with eachother.

StanislavPetrov 7y ago

>If judges in a jurisdiction are elected, it is the responsibility of the electorate to make sure the judges they select are the most qualified (perhaps by studying previous decisions, academic publications, etc). Analogously, if judges are appointed by other elected officials, it is the responsibility of the electorate to select public servants who are good at appointing competent judges. Responsibility is not a zero sum game. Voters and officials who elect and appoint judges are responsible for their actions just as much as judges are responsible for upholding and following the law. While many areas of the law are ambiguous and up to the discretion of the judge to decide, many other areas are well-established and clear cut (such as the illegality of jailing defendants who have not had access to a lawyer). The fact remains that we cannot exist as a society that depends on the rule of law to function if we have judges and other officers of the court who are unwilling or incapable of upholding the law as it exists.