"Everyone should respect the law. Once lawlessness becomes a norm, things will be complicated and interest of people will be undermined," said Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has ultimate authority over political and religious life in Iran. "We will not step an inch beyond the law: our law, our country's law, the Islamic Republic's law."
this overweening respect for the law expresses itself by arming thugs, beating people, shooting them, throwing them off bridges, etc. now if you did stuff like that, it would be murder. but when we do it, we are enforcing the law. the rule of law = unconditional submission to our every whim. or: the law is a decent, neutral arbiter, indifferent as to persons. and it is identical to the will of a particular person.
