Current Events > So if a "sovereign citizen" has a Tesla and the car is driving itself

(+) Yeah! (+)

Can they legitimately claim they are traveling and not driving?
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No because the idea of sovereign citizen is inherently ridiculous, no one is above the law.
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... They could...

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You can claim anything.

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Well, yes, but then who would pull them over?

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LightningCamaro posted...

No because the idea of sovereign citizen is inherently ridiculous, no one is above the law.

The term is oxymoronic. If you deny the state, you're not a citizen.

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Verdekal posted...

The term is oxymoronic. If you deny the state, you're not a citizen.

Isn't using the state-funded roadway still a form of acknowledging the state?

Besides, they won't cow to any law enforcement authority except for "the sheriff" because the sheriff is an elected office. But wouldn't that mean they have to be willing to vote and utilize governing of the people, by the people (thus meaning they have to register to vote and thereby interact with the state and its infrastructure/bureaucracy).

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Solid Sonic posted...

Isn't using the state-funded roadway still a form of acknowledging the state?

Besides, they won't cow to any law enforcement authority except for "the sheriff" because the sheriff is an elected office. But wouldn't that mean they have to be willing to vote and utilize governing of the people, by the people?

Well, they're nuts.

It seems like an extreme version of off the grid which is impossible on a straw-man level. Which is their own fallacy.

Their reasoning might be that they acknowledge the physical existence of everything the government does but denies the abstract concepts behind it.

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CableZL posted...

Can they legitimately

They can't legitimately anything.

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Verdekal posted...

The term is oxymoronic. If you deny the state, you're not a citizen.

They're a citizen of their own country which has the borders of their skin.

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Mr Hangman posted...

Don't know why you threw in the "sovereign citizen" thing, TC. Liability with self-driving cars is a serious question regardless.

My expectation is that the owner of the vehicle, regardless of who's in it, will be required to have insurance. That insurance will probably be part of a package deal sold by the manufacturer rather than after market. It would probably be cheaper than regular car insurance. The "driver" or passenger would only need to show they didn't tamper with it or otherwise attempt to use it in a way that wasn't designed.

If no insurance was involved, probably the owner would be liable who would then sue the manufacturer. Courts would likely hold the manufacturer liable if, again, the car was unmodified and being operated as designed, and it was being serviced regularly.

I threw it in because they seemingly like to forum they were traveling and not driving. If the car drives itself, it would at least make the claim technically true.
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