# Must You Obey Government? **URL:** **By** Aaron Ross Powell, Trevor Burrus **Published:** March 17, 2017 --- Aaron and Trevor have a discussion about the political authority of the state. Should one obey the government? Is there a compelling reason to? Aaron and Trevor have a discussion about the political authority of the state. Should one obey the government? Is there a compelling reason to? Why does it matter? **Show Notes and Further Reading** Listeners interested in this topic should check out [our episode of Free Thoughts with Michael Huemer on this topic](https://www.libertarianism.org/podcasts/free-thoughts/the-problem-of-political-authority). Aaron mentions Socrates' actions in Plato's _Crito_, [here is our Free Thoughts episode on that dialogue](https://www.libertarianism.org/podcasts/free-thoughts/socrates-on-trial-part-2-crito). Trevor talks about his lecture "[The Statrix: How Government Warps Our Perception of the World](https://www.libertarianism.org/podcasts/free-thoughts/the-statrix-how-government-warps-our-perception-of-the-world)."