Thinking Out LoudWhen reading about the “sovereign citizen” movement I normally find myself caught somewhere between bemusement and curiosity. So, when the Chief Justice of WA, Peter Quinlan, warned that these loosely aligned individuals pose a growing threat to the safety and stability of our society, it felt a bit melodramatic. But the clear influence of ‘SovCit’ ideology on the recent tragedy in regional Victoria is a sobering reminder that these ideas can be dangerous.
I genuinely respect those with concerns about the bureaucratic creep of government and the corrupting reach of special interests, and I think we should stay awake to the risks of legislative overreach and heavy-handed policing. Until recently, though, I would’ve dismissed the “sovereign citizen” movement as little more than delusions of grandeur coupled with courtroom theatrics. But perhaps there’s more going on.
We live in a marketplace that promises everything “our way.” Customised. Personalised. Delivered yesterday. And when autonomy itself becomes the product – my playlist, my feed, my profile, my rights – it’s not a huge leap from curating my identity to imagining my own legal system. Besides, if I don’t like the rules, why can’t I just unsubscribe and cancel the social contract?
I’m being slightly facetious, but I’m not immune to the currents of consumerism that feed these periodic surges of entitlement. I can understand the appeal of a world where my whims are enshrined as the constitution of a one-person state. It’s a seductive fantasy – well at least until I need surgery or a functioning sewage system.
Personally, I’m happy to embrace the civilising constraints of the rule of law and accept the validity of existing authorities. But I’d be lying if I said the eternal temptation to self-rule doesn’t whisper to me too – its voice closer, and more familiar, than I’d like to admit.
This Thinking Out Loud was first published on Facebook.