I believe it can be stated with certainty that the subjects of any legitimate state have the obligation to obey their governing bodies. Underlying my obedience to the laws of my country are a number of reasons: the understanding of my obligation to take responsibility for my actions, the recognition of my government's authority over me, the belief that the laws of my country are well founded and the fear of the consequences of disobedience to such laws. Without laws, a society would quickly collapse into disorder and chaos, unless all of its population were benevolent and altruistic. And since my beliefs about human nature run counter to the idea that we all want what's best for others, I don't believe such chaos can be avoided without a respected set of laws. Laws are, in large part, put in place to protect the rights, freedoms and safety of every individual. However, I believe that this obligation is conditional and that there are justifiable reasons to break the law in a number of circumstances. Indeed, I believe in a prima facie obligation to obey the law. While I am bound by an obligation to my native country, which has protected me and granted me freedom and countless social services since birth, I am also bound by my moral principles and beliefs. Luckily, these values ​​are rarely at odds with each other because my value system was influenced by the values ​​of the country I grew up in. The social contract between me and the Canadian government respects my autonomy while placing limits on my freedom to protect the rest of its citizens. For the most part, I allow these limits on my freedom and defer to the knowledge of our legislators who probably see the bigger picture more clearly in the middle of the paper than reasonable. The alternatives, blind obedience or contempt for a state's authority, may be supported by others, but I firmly believe it would result in autocracy or complete chaos respectively. The idea that we owe our government blind obedience undermines our right to self-determination, and the idea that the state has no authority over us is based on the illusion that we are all completely autonomous beings. What remains is the middle ground between anarchy and authoritarian rule, where gratitude and loyalty for the services provided by the government translate into the recognition that its laws must be respected, but questioned. Since there are exceptions to every rule, I believe that it is the citizen's duty to disobey and cry out when those same laws are no longer a protection of their rights and freedoms, and instead become an obstacle for them...