History Main / ResignationsNotAccepted

* In ''Manga/ChainsawMan'', when Denji's first recruited by Makima she tells him that he'll be killed if he refuses to become a [[DemonSlaying Devil Hunter]], but he doesn't really care because of the [[OnlyInItForTheMoney good pay]] and [[TheVamp his crush on her]]. [[spoiler:When he attempts to run away with Bomb Girl however, Makima kills her so [[EvilPlan he has no more reason to leave]]. After Makima's HeelFaceReincarnation into Nayuta he seemingly found a way out, only for Public Safety to [[IHaveYourWife use her life to blackmail him]] into doing their bidding.]]

However, a distinct minority supporting the seniormost male-line descendant of Felipe V, on the grounds that Felipe had not the authority to disclaim his right to succeed to the French throne. By this point, the relevant candidate was not actually the King of Spain, the Spanish throne having passed to a woman, Isabella II (though not before Spain endured a civil war over Isabella's right to the throne over her cousin, the relevant candidate). This plus the weakness of Spain in the late 19th century vitiated the old Great Power concerns about passing the French throne through the Spanish line of Bourbons--hence the eagerness of this minority of Legitimists to avoid the Comte de Paris. However, all of this ended up moot when a political crisis during the Comte de Chambord's lifetime led to the election of a republican majority in the Chamber of Deputies of the supposedly-temporary Third Republic. This entrenched the Third Republic to the point where it would last until the Fall of France in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII and become the longest-lived French regime since [[UsefulNotes/TheFrenchRevolution the deposition of Louis XVI in 1792]].[[note]]A title the Third Republic will hold until August 9, 2028, at which point the Fifth Republic will overtake it, assuming no major constitutional changes in France before that date.[[/note]]

[[caption-width-right:317:So do it for her.]]

--->'''Barney:''' Well, it looks like Fred is still on a diet, whether he likes it or not! ''[[[EverybodyLaughsEnding He, Wilma, and Betty]] [[NoSympathy laugh]]]''

* In the ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' [[ShowWithinAShow Movie Within A Show]] "The Magnificent Three" from [[Recap/FuturamaS3E8ThatsLobstertainment That's Lobstertainment!]], the Vice President of Earth (played by Calculon), also the son of the President of Earth (played by Harold Zoid), refuses to follow in his father's footsteps and tries to resign at the end of the film. However, the President tears up his letter of resignation right before falling off the roof of the White House to his death, leading his son to become President, [[BigNo much to his dismay]].

* In ''Manga/ChainsawMan'', when Denji's first recruited by Makima she tells him that he'll be killed if he refuses to become a [[DemonSlaying Devil Hunter]], but he doesn't really care because of the [[OnlyInItForTheMoney good pay]] and [[TheVamp his crush on her]]. [[spoiler:When he attempts to run away with Bomb Girl however, Makima kills her so [[EvilPlan he has no more reason to leave]].]]

Ha! Good luck with that, because once you join a shadowy organization of this sort, you can never leave. If your bosses don't force you to keep working, they'll soon start saying, "HeKnowsTooMuch" and making plans for you to be [[DeadlyEuphemism "permanently retired"]] with some concrete shoes. This normally only happens in villainous organizations, so the victim is either a villain or an antihero. Expect HuntingTheRogue or a ContractOnTheHitman to follow. If it doesn't, then the author may [[DroppedABridgeOnHim drop a bridge on you]] just to prove that crime doesn't pay.

* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasy'': Thanks to the BanOnMagic, the only way to leave the Imperial Colleges of Magic is horizontally. {{Downplayed|Trope}} as ''active'' duty isn't always require, so long as members obey the code of conduct and can be called to service when needed; plenty of apprentices-in-perpetuity go back to ordinary jobs, keeping an eye out for magical business, and even full Magisters sometimes pursue other careers.

** The Tau's Fire Caste (the military). There are only two ways to get out: death, or by opting to take a third "trial by fire" (the first two are given to all Fire Warriors), after which they are allowed to become military advisers instead of continuing to fight.
*** Technically applies to all five castes, though the civilian and government castes are much more chill about letting you retire once you get old.

So you've been working as a secret agent, or for TheMafia[=/=]TheSyndicate, or as an [[ProfessionalKiller assassin]], or for an EvilOverlord and their EvilEmpire, or for a NebulousEvilOrganisation[=/=]TheConspiracy, or as a [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking health inspector]], when you decide it's time for you to retire, defect, or just that they've gone one step too far and you need to ResignInProtest.

Ha! Good luck with that, because once you join a shadowy organization of this sort, you can never leave. If your bosses don't force you to keep working, they'll soon start saying, "HeKnowsTooMuch" and making plans for you to be [[DeadlyEphemism "permanently retired"]] with some concrete shoes. This normally only happens in villainous organizations, so the victim is either a villain or an antihero. Expect HuntingTheRogue or a ContractOnTheHitman to follow. If it doesn't, then the author may [[DroppedABridgeOnHim drop a bridge on you]] just to prove that crime doesn't pay.

Ha! Good luck with that, because once you join a shadowy organization of this sort, you can never leave. If your bosses don't force you to keep working, they'll soon start saying, "HeKnowsTooMuch" and making plans for your elimination. This normally only happens in villainous organizations, so the victim is either a villain or an antihero. Expect HuntingTheRogue or a ContractOnTheHitman to follow. If it doesn't, then the author may [[DroppedABridgeOnHim drop a bridge on you]] just to prove that crime doesn't pay.

* ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'': Uli Divini, introduced in the Medstar Duology, was a genius teen surgeon during the Clone Wars who had enlisted for one tour, after which he would go back to his homeworld and presumably start or join a practice. [[Literature/DeathStar Instead]], since the new Empire was short on doctors, they executed an Imperial Military Stop Loss Order, or IMSLO. As a result of that, Uli served for twenty years, getting rather jaded in the process. He tends to Princess Leia after she is tortured, and since he seems like a pretty decent guy she demands to know why he still works for the Empire; he tells her that he can't leave, he'll be shot. She really rattles his sense of complacent resignment, as does [[EarthShatteringKaboom the punishment levied on her homeworld]]. [[spoiler:Working with several others who [[DefectorFromDecadence are similarly horrified]], he manages to escape the Death Star's destruction and joins the Rebellion when the Death Star, somewhat to his own surprise.]]

* ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'': Uli Divini, introduced in the Medstar Duology, was a genius teen surgeon during the Clone Wars who had enlisted for one tour, after which he would go back to his homeworld and presumably start or join a practice. [[Literature/DeathStar Instead]], since the new Empire was short on doctors, they executed an Imperial Military Stop Loss Order, or IMSLO. As a result of that, Uli served for twenty years, getting rather jaded in the process. He tends to Princess Leia after she is tortured, and since he seems like a pretty decent guy she demands to know why he still works for the Empire; he tells her that he can't leave, he'll be shot. She really rattles his sense of complacent resignment, as does [[EarthShatteringKaboom the punishment levied on her homeworld]]. [[spoiler:Working with several others who [[DefectorFromDecadence are similarly horrified he manages to escape the Death Star's destruction and joins the Rebellion when the Death Star, somewhat to his own surprise.]]

* ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'': Uli Divini was a genius teen surgeon during the Clone Wars who had enlisted for one tour, after which he would go back to his homeworld and presumably start or join a practice. [[Literature/DeathStar Instead]], since the new Empire was short on doctors, they executed an Imperial Military Stop Loss Order, or IMSLO. As a result of that, Uli served for twenty years, getting rather jaded in the process. He tends to Princess Leia after she is tortured, and since he seems like a pretty decent guy she demands to know why he still works for the Empire; he tells her that he can't leave, he'll be shot. [[spoiler:He joins the Rebellion when the Death Star is destroyed, somewhat to his own surprise.]]
--> (IMSLO is) A retroactive order mandating that, no matter when you'd been conscripted, once you were in, you were in for as long as they wanted you -- or until you got killed. Either way, it was kiss your planned life goodbye. Imperial Military Stop Loss Order. An alternative translation, scrawled no doubt on a 'fresher wall somewhere by a clever graffitist, had caught on over the last few years: "I'm [[UnusualEuphemism Milking Scragged]]; Life's Over."

However, a distinct minority supporting the seniormost male-line descendant of Felipe V, on the grounds that Felipe had not the authority to disclaim his right to succeed to the French throne. By this point, the relevant candidate was not actually the King of Spain, the Spanish throne having passed to a woman, Isabella II (though not before Spain endured a civil war over Isabella's right to the throne over her cousin, the relevant candidate). This plus the weakness of Spain in the late 19th century vitiated the old Great Power concerns about passing the French throne through the Spanish line of Bourbons--hence the eagerness of this minority of Legitimists to avoid the Comte de Paris. However, all of this ended up moot when a political crisis during the Comte de Chambord's lifetime led to the election of a republican majority in the Chamber of Deputies of the supposedly-temporary Third Republic. This entrenched the Third Republic to the point where it would last until the Fall of France in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII and become the longest-lived French regime since [[UsefulNotes/TheFrenchRevolution the deposition of Louis XVI in 1793]].[[note]]A title the Third Republic will hold until August 9, 2028, at which point the Fifth Republic will overtake it, assuming no major constitutional changes in France before that date.[[/note]]

However, a distinct minority supporting the seniormost male-line descendant of Felipe V, on the grounds that Felipe had not the authority to disclaim his right to succeed to the French throne. By this point, the relevant candidate was not actually the King of Spain, the Spanish throne having passed to a woman, Isabella II (though not before Spain endured a civil war over Isabella's right to the throne over her cousin, the relevant candidate). This plus the weakness of Spain in the late 19th century vitiated the old Great Power concerns about passing the French throne through the Spanish line of Bourbons--hence the eagerness of this minority of Legitimists to avoid the Comte de Paris. However, all of this ended up moot when a political crisis during the Comte de Chambord's lifetime led to the election of a republican majority in the Chamber of Deputies of the supposedly-temporary Third Republic. This entrenched the Third Republic to the point where it would last until the Fall of France in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII and become the longest-lived French regime since [[UsefulNotes/TheFrenchRevolution the deposition of Louis XVI in 1793]].[[note]]A title the Third Republic will hold until August 8, 2028, at which point the Fifth Republic will overtake it, assuming no major constitutional changes in France before that date.[[/note]]

* [[UsefulNotes/LEtatCEstMoi French kings]] were banned from abdicating because of the principle of Indisponibility of the Crown, i.e. the king was banned from tampering with royal succession. This principle led to one of the stranger disputes within the royalist camp ''after'' the Revolution: Philippe, the second son of UsefulNotes/LouisXIV's eldest son, had disclaimed his right to inherit the French throne in order to become Felipe V, King of Spain. For nearly two centuries, this mattered not one bit, as Philippe's elder brother's descendants held the throne until the Revolution, after which they were (usually) not anywhere near being on the throne. However, after the collapse of the Second French Empire in 1871, the Legitimists--the supporters of Philippe's older brother's line--had a plurality in the parliament of the supposedly temporary Third Republic, and were waiting for the last member of that line (Charles, Comte de Chambord) to either (a) come to his senses and reign as a constitutional monarch under the Tricolor or (b) die so that his heir could take the throne and do what Chambord refused to do. The issue of ''who'' that heir actually was split the Legitimist camp, with a majority supporting Philippe, Comte de Paris (who was (1) the seniormost member of the House of Bourbon ''if'' you cut out the descendants of the Philippe who became King of Spain because he was the heir by agnatic primogeniture of Louis XIV's younger brother; and (2) the preferred monarch of the somewhat more liberal Orléanist monarchists, who had a majority between themselves and the Legitimists), but a distinct minority supporting the seniormost male-line descendant of Felipe V, on the grounds that Felipe had not the authority to disclaim his right to succeed to the French throne.

*** In an amusing incident, [[UsefulNotes/NorthernIreland Northern Irish]] Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams, who had been an (abstentionist) MP for Belfast West since 1997, decided to resign Parliament in 2011 to seek election to the [[UsefulNotes/IrishPoliticalSystem Dáil Éireann]]. When he won a seat at Leinster House, he submitted a letter of resignation to the Speaker but didn't apply for a Crown office, as he is opposed to the monarchy on principle. The Chancellor of the Exchequer's office (which handles these things) sent him a letter apologising and saying, essentially, "sorry, there's no other legal means for you to retire from the Commons, so here's your commission and your cheque for the pittance we technically have to pay you".

For an example of how difficult this can be: Under the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perth_Agreement Perth Agreement]] of 2011, the Commonwealth realms agreed to change the rules of succession so that brothers did not automatically take precedence over sisters. Most realms passed legislation allowing this in 2013 but it wasn't fully in place until March 2015. Why? Blame the Parliament of Western Australia, whose leadership literally ''forgot it had to do this'' for two years and didn't get around to voting on the matter until early 2015; only at that point could the Australian Commonwealth government commence the federal legislative process. (Amusingly, the "Perth" in "Perth Agreement" is the capital of Western Australia; it was signed not even a mile away from the Western Australia Parliament House).[[note]]Everyone ''thought'' that it would be the government of Quebec, which was run by "sovereigntists" 2012-14, trying to extract concessions, but the federal government has managed to get around the "every province" requirement for now; even if a suit by some Quebec activists manages to knock that down and force the federal government to let the provinces vote, Quebec is unlikely to cause problems as it will be run by the much more monarchy-friendly federalists for the next few years, as the sovereigntists ''massively'' shot themselves in the foot on other issues during their term in office.[[/note]] And if (somehow) you find yourself in the line of succession but want out, don't think that you can avoid this mess by just stepping aside from your place in the succession: that, too is set by Parliament, and would also require an Act of Parliament (well, all the described Acts of many Parliaments) to modify. The only way someone can lose his/her place in the succession is to convert to Roman Catholicism, as it's written into the rules that nobody who is or has ever been a Catholic could be in remainder to the throne.[[note]]This is at this point mostly to avoid the LogicBomb of having a Catholic be the Supreme Governor of the (Protestant) Church of England and protector of the (even more Protestant) Church of Scotland. Being Catholic is specifically contradictory with these roles because acceptance of Papal authority is a fundamental article of faith in Catholicism--indeed, it's the main thing distinguishing Catholicism from several other sects--but the rejection of Papal authority is a fundamental article of faith in both the Church of England and the Church of Scotland. The conflicting commitments are contradictory in a way that they wouldn't be for, say, an Eastern Orthodox monarch. (We should note here that the rules do require the monarch to be a Christian, but since there seem to be no clearly non-Christian dynasts, and certainly none of any significance, this is a non-issue.) The reason that former Catholics are still barred is unclear, but it's more likely to be reflective of an attitude of "you can only get on the list if you're born onto it" rather than any inherent anti-Catholicism.[[/note]] This itself is no small undertaking, as while converting to Catholicism is easier than converting to, say, Judaism, they still make you go through several weeks to several months of courses to prove you're serious.[[note]]Before 2015 one could also choose to marry a Roman Catholic but the religion of an heir's spouse no longer matters.[[/note]]

For an example of how difficult this can be: Under the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perth_Agreement Perth Agreement]] of 2011, the Commonwealth realms agreed to change the rules of succession so that brothers did not automatically take precedence over sisters. Most realms passed legislation allowing this in 2013 but it wasn't fully in place until March 2015. Why? Blame the Parliament of Western Australia, which didn't get around to voting on the matter until earlier that month; only at that point could the Australian Commonwealth government commence the federal legislative process. (Amusingly, the "Perth" in "Perth Agreement" is the capital of Western Australia; it was signed not even a mile away from the Western Australia Parliament House).[[note]]Everyone ''thought'' that it would be the government of Quebec, which was run by "sovereigntists" 2012-14, trying to extract concessions, but the federal government has managed to get around the "every province" requirement for now; even if a suit by some Quebec activists manages to knock that down and force the federal government to let the provinces vote, Quebec is unlikely to cause problems as it will be run by the much more monarchy-friendly federalists for the next few years, as the sovereigntists ''massively'' shot themselves in the foot on other issues during their term in office.[[/note]] And if (somehow) you find yourself in the line of succession but want out, don't think that you can avoid this mess by just stepping aside from your place in the succession: that, too is set by Parliament, and would also require an Act of Parliament (well, all the described Acts of many Parliaments) to modify. The only way someone can lose his/her place in the succession is to convert to Roman Catholicism, as it's written into the rules that nobody who is or has ever been a Catholic could be in remainder to the throne.[[note]]This is at this point mostly to avoid the LogicBomb of having a Catholic be the Supreme Governor of the (Protestant) Church of England and protector of the (even more Protestant) Church of Scotland. Being Catholic is specifically contradictory with these roles because acceptance of Papal authority is a fundamental article of faith in Catholicism--indeed, it's the main thing distinguishing Catholicism from several other sects--but the rejection of Papal authority is a fundamental article of faith in both the Church of England and the Church of Scotland. The conflicting commitments are contradictory in a way that they wouldn't be for, say, an Eastern Orthodox monarch. (We should note here that the rules do require the monarch to be a Christian, but since there seem to be no clearly non-Christian dynasts, and certainly none of any significance, this is a non-issue.) The reason that former Catholics are still barred is unclear, but it's more likely to be reflective of an attitude of "you can only get on the list if you're born onto it" rather than any inherent anti-Catholicism.[[/note]] This itself is no small undertaking, as while converting to Catholicism is easier than converting to, say, Judaism, they still make you go through several weeks to several months of courses to prove you're serious.[[note]]Before 2015 one could also choose to marry a Roman Catholic but the religion of an heir's spouse no longer matters.[[/note]]