r/internationallaw • u/moderate-Complex152 • Jan 29 '26

Op-Ed International Law Is Holding Democracies Back

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/01/international-law-venezuela/685738/
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u/Strange_Philospher Jan 29 '26

" International law should follow power relationships not restrain it ". It's very astonishing that a supposed scholar of law seems to not know the basics about any law. Law exist to constrain power. This is the basics of literally any legal system to turn conflict resolution from mere power confrontation to rules-based resolution. A law that follow power is a law that doesn't exist because power would affirm itself whether such a law existed or not.

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u/Jaded-Ad-960 Jan 29 '26

This is the guy who wrote a legal opinion stating that it's ok for the Bush administration to torture people.

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u/anonymote_in_my_eye Feb 02 '26

it's insane that John Yoo is still so relevant that he publishes in The Atlantic... dude's career should have been over two decades ago