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1[[foldercontrol]]
2[[folder: Anime and Manga]]
3-> ''"[[IAmTheNoun I am the rules.]]"''
4-->-- '''Gilgamesh''', ''Anime/CarnivalPhantasm''
5
6-> '''Delling Rembran:''' No, that [[SuperPrototype thing]] is a Gundam.\
7'''Lady Prospera:''' Why is that?\
8'''Delling:''' Because I said so.
9-->-- ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamTheWitchFromMercury''
10[[/folder]]
11
12[[folder:Comic Books]]
13->'''Al:''' Somebody hired you. Somebody can fire you.\
14'''Alan Greenspan:''' [[MyNameIsInigoMontoya My name is Alan Greenspan.]] I don't work that way.
15-->-- ''ComicBook/{{Marville}}''
16[[/folder]]
17
18[[folder:Fan Works]]
19->'''President Snow:''' All right then, tell me this: what am I supposed to do with a city of screaming hysteria, caused by ''your Victors'', who should know better? How are you going to fix this mess?
20->'''Diana from District 8:''' Cancel the Games.
21->'''President Snow:''' That wouldn't solve my wasted arena problem, now would it?
22->'''Angus from District 10:''' You could run a regular Reaping instead, maybe. Or, well, an irregular one, bein' as it's the Quell, so you could make your own rules.
23->'''President Snow:''' ''(dismissively)'' I [already] make my own rules.
24-->-- ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10411610/1/The-End-is-the-Beginning-is-the-End-The-Quarter-Quell The End is the Beginning is the End: The Quarter Quell]]'', from the ''Fanfic/WeMustBeKillers'' fan fiction series.
25[[/folder]]
26
27[[folder:Film -- Animated]]
28->"I'm the king, I can do whatever I want!"
29-->-- '''Scar''', ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994''
30
31->"She [Madam Mim] only makes the rules so she can break them!"
32-->-- '''[[TheOwlKnowingOne Archimedes]]''', ''WesternAnimation/TheSwordInTheStone''
33
34->'''Governor Ratcliffe:''' Lies! Lies! All of it! Murderous thieves! There's not room for their kind in civilized society!\
35'''John Smith:''' But this is their land!\
36'''Governor Ratcliffe:''' THIS IS MY LAND! I make the laws here.
37-->--''WesternAnimation/{{Pocahontas}}''
38[[/folder]]
39
40[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]
41
42->"There's what, maybe five hundred people in this hospital? I could pump you full of bullets right now and I wouldn't be arrested. Everyone would lie for me -- everyone who counts -- otherwise all ''their own'' lies, everything that runs Sin City, it all comes tumbling down like a pack of cards."
43-->-- '''Senator Roark''', ''Film/SinCity''
44
45->'''Light''': ''I'' decide who dies, you obey me. Those are the rules.\
46'''Ryuk''': And who do you think wrote the rules?
47-->-- ''Film/DeathNote2017''
48
49->"But nobody's gonna hang ''us'' for treason. We do the hanging."
50-->-- '''Kruger''', ''Film/{{Elysium}}''
51
52->'''Nicholas Angel''': ''[[WithAllDueRespect With respect]]'', sir, you can't just make people disappear.\
53'''Chief Inspector''': [pretends to think] ''Yyyyyy''yes I can. I'm the Chief Inspector.
54-->-- ''Film/HotFuzz''
55
56->"I can do anything, I’m the chief of police."
57-->-- '''Chief Martin Brody''', ''Film/{{Jaws}}''
58
59->'''Darth Sidious:''' This turn of events is unfortunate. We must accelerate our plans. Begin landing your troops.\
60'''Nute Gunray''': My lord, is that... legal?\
61'''Darth Sidious''': I will ''make'' it legal.
62-->-- ''Film/StarWarsEpisodeIThePhantomMenace''
63
64->'''Mace Windu''': In the name of the Galactic Senate of the Republic, you're under arrest, Chancellor.\
65'''Darth Sidious''': [[IsThatAThreat Are you threatening me, Master Jedi?]]\
66'''Mace Windu''': The Senate will decide your fate.\
67'''Darth Sidious''': [[IAmTheNoun I]] ''[[IAmTheNoun am]]'' [[IAmTheNoun the Senate.]]\
68'''Mace Windu''': Not yet.\
69'''Darth Sidious''': ''(draws lightsaber)'' It's treason, then.
70-->-- ''Film/StarWarsEpisodeIIIRevengeOfTheSith''
71
72->'''Aldo''': Why were you there? To visit the city is forbidden.\
73'''Caesar''': I know. '''I''' forbade it.\
74'''Aldo''': Then why--?\
75'''Virgil''': Aldo, if a King forbids his subjects to wear a crown, that doesn't mean he can't wear one himself.
76-->-- ''Film/BattleForThePlanetOfTheApes''
77
78->This is my word, and as such it is ''beyond contestation''.
79-->-- '''Prince Edward''', ''Film/AKnightsTale''
80
81[[/folder]]
82
83[[folder:Literature]]
84
85->''Integrity\
86Truth, loyalty are private virtues; kings\
87Do as they will.''
88-->-- '''Atreus''', ''Thyestes''
89
90->''"I had forgotten that you are only a common boy. How should you understand reasons of State? You must learn, child, that what would be wrong for you or for any of the common people is not wrong in a great Queen such as I. The weight of the world is on our shoulders. We must be freed from all rules."''
91-->-- '''Jadis''', ''Literature/TheMagiciansNephew''
92
93->''Two types of people laugh at the law: those that break it and those that make it.''
94-->-- ''Literature/NightWatchDiscworld''
95
96->'''Greenyham:''' You can't do that!\
97'''Vetinari:''' Can I not? I am a tyrant. It's what we do.
98-->-- ''Literature/GoingPostal''
99
100->'''Blaylock:''' You falsified the records.\
101'''Kotov:''' I amended them. Mister Surcouf’s physical Letter of Marque may be counterfeit, but so far as Imperial records are concerned, he is a legitimate Rogue Trader, and has been since his arrival on Anohkin.\
102'''Blaylock:''' This is outrageous. You cannot do this.\
103'''Kotov:''' I am an archmagos of the Adeptus Mechanicus. I can do whatever I want.
104-->-- ''Literature/ForgesOfMars''
105
106->'''[[spoiler:[[TheMole Takadox]]]]''': [[BigBad Makuta]], look! I have the Brotherhood's tablet of transit! Under Brotherhood law, [[YouWillBeSpared I must be spared]]!\
107''*Makuta takes the tablet and looks at it before looking back at [[spoiler:Takadox]]...and crushes it to dust within his grip*''\
108'''Makuta''': "Under Brotherhood law?" I ''am'' Brotherhood law!
109-->-- ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}'', "Downfall"
110[[/folder]]
111
112[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
113-> '''Daisy Duke:''' There's a law against carrying someone off and forcing them to marry you.
114-> '''Pa Beaudry:''' Well now, we're the law around these here parts, Daisy gal, so you'd best just get on inside and get yourself all [[{{Malaproper}} purtied]] up.
115-->-- ''Series/TheDukesOfHazzard'', "Daisy's Shotgun Wedding."
116
117->'''Joe''': This kid's gold. If he keeps messing up [the challenge] it's gonna drive Sal crazy, so let's just make it a punishment for Sal.\
118'''Murr''': I dunno, is that against the rules?\
119'''Q''': What rules? We make the rules.\
120'''Joe''': We ''are'' the rules.
121-->-- ''Series/ImpracticalJokers'', "Water Torture"
122
123->''"I am the king, I can do what I like!\
124Start up a war, or a big tax hike!\
125Got a French wife, she's a Catholic...\
126''(Oh Lord!)''\
127''(Really, King Charles, we're not quite sure...)''\
128Insolence! Is that how you talk to the crown?\
129I am the king, I'll just close parliament down!"''
130-->-- ''Series/HorribleHistories'', "English Civil War"
131
132->''"I went from Rome to Greece so I could play them at their games,\
133In 67AD you know I won Olympic fame!\
134I told them to include a contest based on poetry,\
135Not much good for sportsmen no, but brilliant for me! Ha Ha!\
136Crashed my racing chariot, but still awarded gold,\
137Hey, my Olympics, my rules, to argue would be bold!\
138I won every medal that was up for grabs,\
139The crowd loved it, well they had to or I would have had them stabbed! Okay?!"''
140-->-- '''Emperor UsefulNotes/{{Nero}}''', ''Series/HorribleHistories'', "Flame"
141
142->'''Cap. Sheridan''': "Diplomatic immunity" only applies when the subject is charged with a crime. So far, Mr. Morden hasn't been charged. We're holding him in, uh, ''protective'' custody.\
143'''Vir''': Protecting him from what??\
144'''Sheridan''': I haven't decided yet. Good day, Mr. Cotto.
145-->-- ''Series/BabylonFive'', [[{{Recap/BabylonFiveS02E16InTheShadowOfZHaDum}} "In the Shadow of Z'Ha'Dum"]]
146
147->"There are laws. There are laws of Time, and once upon a time there were people in charge of those laws, but they died. They all died. Do you know who that leaves? ''[[LastOfHisKind Me!]]'' It's taken me all these years to realize the Laws of Time are mine, and ''they will obey me!''"
148-->-- '''Tenth Doctor''', ''Series/DoctorWho'' ([[{{Recap/DoctorWhoS30E16TheWatersOfMars}} "The Waters of Mars"]])
149
150-> '''Lt. Blue:''' You don't like soldiers much, do you?\
151'''Twelth Doctor:''' You don't need to be liked, [[GunboatDiplomacy you've got all the guns.]]
152-->-- ''Series/DoctorWho'', [[{{Recap/DoctorWhoS34E2IntoTheDalek}} "Into the Dalek"]]
153
154->"''THE KING CAN DO AS HE LIKES!''"
155-->-- '''[[TheCaligula King Joffrey Baratheon]]''', ''Series/GameOfThrones''
156
157->"We can cheat. Why? Cause it's my show!"
158-->-- '''Dave Benson Phillips''', ''Series/GetYourOwnBack''
159
160->"How do you plan to implement this 'protocol', Doctor? Mister Tuvok doesn't have a security team. Both the brigs have been destroyed. And with the internal forcefields offline, you'll have a hell of a time keeping ''me'' confined. You'd better grab a phaser, because before I give up command you'll have to shoot me."
161-->-- '''Cap. Janeway''', ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'' ("Year of Hell Pt. 2")
162
163->'''Arjun:''' I thought surprise visits were against the rules.
164->'''Chrisjen:''' Fuck the rules, I'm in charge.
165-->-- ''Series/TheExpanse''
166
167[[/folder]]
168
169[[folder:Music]]
170->''I'm the new folk hero of the Ku Klux Klan\
171My cop friends think that's fine\
172You can get away with murder if you've got a badge''
173-->-- '''Music/DeadKennedys''', "I Fought the Law"
174
175->''Genocide?\
176Who will drag me to court?\
177There´s no crime if you do not get caught\
178I am the law! We burn!''
179-->-- '''Music/{{Sabaton}}''', "We Burn"
180[[/folder]]
181
182[[folder:Print Media]]
183->”Authoritarianism is always an ideology of inequality: I make the rules, you follow them, I change them at will and punish those who disobey, or, if I feel like it, those who do [obey] because I can.”
184-->-- '''Rebecca Solnit''', [[https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jan/06/trump-mob-storm-capitol-washington-coup-attempt “Call It What It Was: A Coup Attempt”]], ''[[UsefulNotes/BritishNewspapers The Guardian]]''
185[[/folder]]
186
187[[folder:Stand-up Comedy]]
188->"I just bought a two-bedroom house, but I think I get to decide how many bedrooms there are, don't you? 'Fuck you, real estate lady! This bedroom has an oven in it! This bedroom's got a lot of people sitting around watching TV. This bedroom's over in that guy's house! Sir, you have one of my bedrooms, are you aware? Don't decorate it!'"
189-->-- '''Creator/MitchHedberg'''
190[[/folder]]
191
192[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
193->''It is Morathi and Morathi alone of the Witch Elves who is allowed to wield magical power; like her son, Morathi feels no shame in creating laws and traditions for the control of others, whilst ignoring them herself.''
194-->-- ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}: Dark Elves Army Book (6th Edition)''
195
196->''"Know the laws of Andoran and [[DefiedTrope do not exempt authorities from the application of the law]]."''
197-->-- paladin code tenet for the [[https://aonprd.com/OathDisplay.aspx?FixedName=Oath%20of%20the%20People%27s%20Council Oath of the People's Council]], ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}''
198[[/folder]]
199
200[[folder:Video Games]]
201->"When you get to where I am, you can just create your own truths. Anytime you want. Kay Faraday is the culprit. That was the truth I simply manufactured out of thin air."
202-->-- '''Blaise Debeste''', ''[[VisualNovel/AceAttorneyInvestigations Ace Attorney Investigations 2]]'', The Forgotten Turnabout
203
204->"I am the queen of this kingdom. And the queen IS the law. As such, I need not follow the laws that are in place. I can make and break them at will!"
205-->-- '''Ga'ran Sigatar Khura'in''', ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneySpiritOfJustice'', Turnabout Revolution
206
207->"They're telling me I oughta stop making these pre-recorded messages. That gave me an idea: make '''more'''' pre-recorded messages! I pay the bills around here, I can talk about the control group all damn day!"
208-->-- '''Cave Johnson''', ''VideoGame/Portal2''
209
210->"When due process fails us, we really do live in a world of terror."
211-->-- '''JC Denton''', ''VideoGame/DeusEx''
212
213->"We could shit on you from such a height, you'd think God himself had crapped on you."
214-->-- '''Officer Frank Tenpenny''', ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas''
215
216->'''Ocelot''': I don't approve of your methods.\
217'''Col. Volgin''': I don't ''need'' your approval. ''I'm'' in command here.
218-->-- ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3SnakeEater''
219
220->'''Gatatog Uvenk:''' You abandon many traditions to get your way. Dangerous.\
221'''Urdnot Wrex:''' Speak when spoken to, Uvenk. I'll drag your clan to glory whether it likes it or not.
222-->-- ''VideoGame/MassEffect2''
223
224->"Did you know that, legally speaking, my word is the same as [[TheDragon Tunon]]'s word unless he contradicts my word as Fatebinder? Rhogalus says the legal term for that is Proxy Decisis. Calio says the legal term is 'fuck you, I'm the law'."
225-->-- '''The Fatebinder''', ''VideoGame/{{Tyranny}}''
226
227->'''Arfoire:''' As a CPU, you should treat prisoners according to the law!\
228'''Uzume:''' Law? Like I give a crap! I'm the CPU of this nation and that means I AM the law! Whatever I do is the freakin' law! Even if I beat you to a bloody, dead pulp, as long as it's cool in my book, that's all that matters, right? HUH?! ANSWER ME!
229-->-- ''VideoGame/MegadimensionNeptuniaVII''
230
231->'''[[spoiler:Mitch Connor]]''': New rule: any damage I take goes to the Coon\
232'''The Coon''': ''[[BigWhat WHAT?!]]'' (''[[spoiler:Mitch]] recovers from the damage he took, redirecting it to the Coon'') OW, FUCK!\
233'''[[spoiler:Mitch Connor]]''': Oh, StatusEffects too. (''Deflects the Bleeding status that the Coon inflicted back'')\
234'''The Coon''': What the… what the hell?!\
235'''Human Kite''': [[spoiler:Mitch]], stop! This is ''cruel!''\
236'''[[spoiler:Mitch Connor]]''': No can do, Human Kite. [[{{Hypocrite}} It's the rules]].
237-->-- ''VideoGame/SouthParkTheFracturedButWhole''
238[[/folder]]
239
240[[folder:Web Animation]]
241->"You're the king, dumb-dumb. You can do whatever you want."
242-->-- '''Cardinal Wolsey''' to '''UsefulNotes/HenryVIII''', ''WebAnimation/OverSimplified''
243
244->'''America:''' The banana industry has been incredibly lucrative during this last century, and I want to control it. Among other reasons.\
245'''Guatemala:''' No way, you can't do that.\
246'''America:''' Actually, I can. The Monroe Doctrine and the Roosevelt Corollary assert my right to intervene in Latin American countries to protect American interests.\
247'''Cuba:''' But ''you'' came up with those doctrines!\
248'''America:''' Yeah… [[MoralMyopia it's 'cause I'm the best country ever!]]
249-->-- ''WebAnimation/MrSpherical''
250[[/folder]]
251
252[[folder:Webcomics]]
253->''"...Look, kid, my first name is ''Boss'' and my last name is ''Leader''. Rules only apply to me [[{{Pun}} when they're looking for JOBS]]. 'Cause I MAKE or BREAK the rules. SON."''
254-->-- '''Boss Leader''', ''Webcomic/{{Paranatural}}'', [[https://www.paranatural.net/comic/chapter-4-page-120 Chapter 4 Page 120]]
255
256->'''General Bala-Amin:''' You're familiar with Celeschul's "Special Assets" law, I presume?\
257'''Commodore Tagon:''' I better be. I wrote the stupid thing.\
258'''General Bala-Amin:''' Then you knew you were breaking it when you left retirement and took command of a company of mercenaries in service to a foreign power.\
259'''Commore Tagon:''' I wrote it. I can re-write it.\
260'''General Bala-Amin:''' That's not actually how law works.\
261'''Commodore Tagon:''' I know members of the legislature who would disagree with you under oath.\
262'''General Bala-Amin:''' Okay, that's not how law works for regular people.
263-->-- ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'', [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2015-07-09 Thursday July 9th 2015]]
264
265->''"I am my own justification. So say I. This is the '''law''' of '''kings'''. Either make it your own -- or know your place."''
266-->-- '''[[GodEmperor Solomon David]]''', ''Webcomic/KillSixBillionDemons'', [[https://killsixbilliondemons.com/comic/king-of-swords-10-150/ 10-150]]
267[[/folder]]
268
269[[folder:Web Original]]
270->"He contradicts his own rules! He says 'no stealing', then he goes and steals from me! He says 'no {{grief|er}}ing', then he ruins the entire– look at that! ''(points at a massive crater in the ground)'' That is Dream! That is Dream! ''(Beat)'' So here's what we're doing today. We were sick of it, you see, chat. We were sick, so we moved to a new home. L'Manburg, alright? [...] L'Manburg, oh, how it was superior, and Dream didn't like that. [[ControlFreak The power left his grasp!]]– one might say. So now he's gone– he's gone insane."
271-->-- '''Tommy''' on Dream, ''WebVideo/DreamSMP''
272
273->'''Ravandil:''' And that's a fucking crime?!\
274'''Dwarf king:''' It should be. Wait... I'm the KING! NOW IT IS!
275-->-- ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azOvRwrqz2M Warhammer: Ravandil's Quest]]''
276
277-> '''WebVideo/{{Alpharad}}:''' I think Caleb's in last, but I'm just having a little fun with this. ''(Throws a real life [[VideoGame/MarioKart Blue Shell]] at him)''\
278'''Caleb:''' I'M NOT IN FIRST!\
279'''Alpharad:''' [[ItAmusedMe I KNOW, BUT IT'S FUN!]]
280-->-- ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8z3AGQUeU1g Mario Kart in real life is dangerous]]''
281[[/folder]]
282
283[[folder:Western Animation]]
284->"When ''you'' are king, you may decide what is and is not right. But ''I'' am king now, and what I say '''is law!'''"
285-->-- '''King Charlatan''', ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyAndFriends'', "[[Recap/MyLittlePonyAndFriendsE41BabyItsColdOutside1 Baby, It's Cold Outside, Part 1]]"
286
287->"It's a ''friendship'' school! With its ''own'' rules! I should know; ''I'' wrote the book!"
288-->-- '''Twilight Sparkle''', ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic''
289
290->'''Vizier:''' I just heard you plan to allow that [[FantasticSlur ice trash]], Cryos, to come to our world!\
291'''Prince Pyrus:''' He called, and I said yes. What's the big deal?\
292'''Vizier:''' Our worlds have been at war for centuries. This is not for you alone to decide! Our law dictates--\
293'''Prince Pyrus:''' You forget. As prince, I ''am'' the law!
294-->--''WesternAnimation/ShadowRaiders''
295
296[[/folder]]
297
298[[folder:Real Life]]
299->"L'état? C'est moi!"
300-->-- '''Louis XIV'''
301
302->''It is more dangerous that even a guilty person should be punished without the forms of law than that he should escape.''
303-->-- '''UsefulNotes/ThomasJefferson'''
304
305->"Where my Guards appear, there is no room for democracy."
306-->-- '''Kaiser Wilheim II'''
307
308->The world is full of injustice, and those who profit by injustice are in a position to administer rewards and punishments. The rewards go to those who invent ingenious justifications for inequality, the punishments to those who try to remedy it.
309-->-- '''Creator/BertrandRussell''', ''Sceptical Essays''
310
311->''The only good bureaucrat is one with a pistol at his head. Put it in his hand and it's good-bye to the Bill of Rights.''
312-->-- '''Creator/HLMencken''', ''On Politics: A Carnival of Buncombe''
313
314->"The illegal we do at once; the unconstitutional takes a little longer."
315-->-- '''Henry Kissenger''', parodying the Army Corps of Engineers' motto
316
317->"I'm the president, and you're not."
318-->-- '''UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump'''
319
320->"Screw State! State's always on the side of the blacks. The Hell with them!"
321-->-- '''UsefulNotes/RichardNixon''', White House tape transcripts from 1972
322
323->"My library is filled with UN condemnations."
324-->--Chilean President '''Augusto Pinochet'''
325
326->"By definition, as a Prime Minister I cannot be a liar."
327-->-- '''Silvio Berlusconi'''
328
329->"I ''am'' the Federal Government."
330-->-- '''Tom [=DeLay=]''', when told to [[CantYouReadTheSign put out his cigar in a restaurant]]
331
332->"To have 'the powers that be' speak to you directly, and it be as you feared...To have very powerful figures look at you in the eye and say, 'You’re right in what you’re saying, but [[MakeAnExampleOfThem we’re going to crunch you anyway.]]'"
333-->-- '''Yanis Varoufakis''', Greek finance minister
334
335->''Essentially, while I am allowed to exaggerate for comic effect, I am not allowed actively to lie. And it struck me as strange, as I watched the eggs rain down on Conservatives this month, that my standup comedian’s lowly standup comedy routines are held accountable to higher legal standards of truth and decency than, for example, [[UsefulNotes/DavidCameron a prime minister’s conference speech.]]''
336-->-- '''Creator/StewartLee'''
337
338->"I had a little concern about [[ViceCity the adjacent nightlife]], and he [Mayor Giuliani] looked me in the eye and he said, 'It’ll be gone,' and I said, 'uh, Mr. Mayor, you know there is the American Civil Liberties Union, and I mean, they’re just not gone.'\
339He said, 'Look me in the eye.' And I said, 'what?' He said, 'Look me in the eye.' I said, 'Okay.' He said, 'They will be ''gone''.'\
340''(shrugs)'' Scared ''me''."
341-->-- '''Michael Eisner''' on Creator/{{Disney}}'s renting of the New Amsterdam Theater, New York City
342
343->''When the political elite can act with impunity, it becomes a corrosive salt eating away at the framework of democracy. It is an ill omen.''
344-->-- '''Arshad M. Khan''', U.S. academic
345
346->(before becoming Speaker) I refer to standing order 268, sub category B, paragraph 12, regarding that a question cannot be asked the way the member had asked it. (after becoming Speaker, addressing similar standing orders) There is no point of order.
347-->-- '''[[UsefulNotes/AustralianPolitics Bronwyn Bishop]]'''
348[[/folder]]

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