And it is of no consequence to inquire how a government came by this power to punish, whether by prescription, by inheritance, by usurpation. or by delegation from the people's If it have now but got it, the government is absolute.
Spooner states that the origins of governmental power are irrelevant if it is currently absolute.
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More from Lysander Spooner
One answer is, that this power, which juries have of judging of the law, is not a power of absolute decision in all cases.
It would be a solecism and absurdity in government to allow such consequences as these.
Practically speaking, no government knows any limits to its power, except the endurance of the people.
Juries would refuse to enforce a tax against a man who had never agreed to pay it.