RULES
Football has rules. Players and the coaches have to follow them. If they don’t, they lose yards on the field, are kicked out of the game, miss future games or are even fined or fired. How are the rules enforced? Referees stop the game and penalize teams or players. Sports commissioners and team owners make sure the punishment sticks.
What would happen if no one listened to the referees or their whistles or flags? What if Commissioners and owners would not support the referees? Soon, the players would stop listening. The referees may give up and leave. Football would become crazy and dangerous. For a short time, it may be pretty fun to watch. But without rules, the game would start to look pretty stupid.
Let’s look at that as an analogy for government. Who makes and enforces the rules of government? Our elected leaders make laws based on what the citizens they represent want. Law enforcement officers enforce them. This includes county sheriffs, state police, and federal agencies like the FBI and Homeland Security. These officers can stop and arrest you. They can legally kill you if you are a threat to them or others. You are put in the legal system where there are prosecutors, lawyers and judges. Judges expect their decisions to be obeyed and enforced.
Right now, the Trump administration breaks laws many times a day – some small, some very serious. The Republican-led Congress allows this to continue. The laws are ignored as if they never existed. Courts can challenge lawbreaking, but judges rely on law enforcement to carry out the rulings. If the judge’s decisions are ignored and not enforced, the system of laws, checks and balances breaks down. Civilization breaks down when no one will enforce the laws.
From day one, the Trump administration began to weaken law enforcement. Anyone not loyal to the president was removed from the FBI, CIA, Justice Department and other agencies. Even our military, the greatest enforcer of our laws and rights is affected. Experienced senior commanders were removed and replaced with unqualified loyalists. Removal of leadership continues at all levels if they are female, or a minority, or if they are felt not to be loyal enough.
At first, a lot of people thought this rule-breaking was sort of entertaining. They thought it was a kind of justice for stupid bureaucrats. They liked to see Washington shaken up. But now the system of laws and enforcement designed to protect the U.S. population is in danger. More people see that the game is not just stupid. It is dangerous. Very dangerous.
[Published in local newspapers in Jan 2026 by Ben Boardmen and friends; shared on this website with permission. Email info@clarkdemocrats.org for more info about how to support BARN OWL in your local paper.]
