Key Takeaways

  • Strawman in Legal Terms:
    • Refers to both a person who owns something in name only and a deceptive argumentative tactic.
    • Historically tied to the evolution of the jury trial and concepts like compurgation.
  • Strawman and Legal Fiction:
    • The "straw man" is a legal fiction designed for convenience, often involving the separation of legal entities from individuals.
  • Governmental Use of Strawman:
    • Tied to debt management in 1933, with birth certificates registering individuals as commercial entities.

What is a straw man in legal terms? It can be two things:

  1. A person who legally owns something in name only. This is done to hide the identity of the real owner. In this case, the straw man does not make any real decisions about the business.
  2. An argument tactic that aims to waste time and/or mask the issues at hand to gain the upper hand and beat an opponent. This form of straw man may also be referred to as a "red herring."

What Is a Straw Man, and What Is the Connection to the Rise of the Jury Trial?

When used in an argument, the straw man technique aims to avoid the true issues at hand. This involves a four-step process:

  1. Opponent A holds a certain opinion.
  2. Opponent B argues a twisted version of opponent A's opinion.
  3. Opponent B argues against the twisted version of opponent A's opinion.
  4. Opponent A's opinion is, therefore, wrong.

In the previous example, opponent B may create a twisted version of opponent A's opinion in many ways, such as:

  • Purposely misinterpreting the concept.
  • Using words or phrases out of context.
  • Oversimplification.

When used in reference to a person, a straw man may play an important role in a jury trial. Using a straw man is essentially a work-around of the law to get the desired outcome that would otherwise be illegal. However, not all workarounds are legal. Some may use a straw man to mask illegal activity, such as money laundering. Similarly, a straw man may also be used to avoid liability in cases of illegal operations, thereby creating another person to take the fall were they ever caught.

This version of the straw man originates from compurgation, which was a type of oath used to settle legal matters in ancient times. Compurgation began to fall out of practice around the year 1600 and was later replaced by the jury trial.

The Strawman as a Legal Fiction

The term "strawman" has been historically utilized as a form of legal fiction, often serving as a tool to dissociate individuals from legal entities. Legal fictions, like the strawman, simplify complex legal scenarios by creating an intermediary entity that facilitates operations. This is not merely an abstract construct; it has practical applications, such as in commercial law, where corporations are treated as separate from their shareholders.

The use of strawmen also parallels the rise of structured legal frameworks, transitioning from compurgation to jury trials, symbolizing the shift from personal oaths to more formalized dispute resolution systems.

Black Law Dictionary of a Straw Man

Since a straw man is not a true person, they exist only within the environment they were created, such as the state. With this, anything a person does outside of the state (or environment in which the straw man was created), does not impact them in their personal life. Similarly, their personal choices cannot be dictated by the state.

In 1933, the straw man began to benefit the government. When the United States filed for bankruptcy in 1933, the governors of the state promised to provide the necessary funds by using the assets that belonged to all people of the state. Unfortunately for the government, they were unable to use assets that existed outside the state's power, including private property. With this, the government devised a way to bridge the gap between the state and the people. This bridge was the straw man.

To implement this, the government made it mandatory that all birth certificates be registered with the Department of Commerce, and that all names be documented in capital letters. Now, bound to the state from birth, it became the people's responsibility to even out the country's debt.

Due to this system, the only way citizens can benefit from the country's services is through their straw man. Essentially, the straw man is a commercial entity acting as a transmitting utility, which is a method of transporting services to the people. These services are ultimately paid for by the straw man through things like paying taxes.

Modern Applications and Misconceptions of Strawmen

In contemporary legal systems, the concept of a strawman often appears in financial and real estate transactions. A strawman is employed to facilitate asset transfers or shield the actual owner’s identity. For instance, in real estate, a straw buyer may temporarily hold the property to help bypass legal or procedural restrictions.

However, the strawman concept is frequently misunderstood. Some fringe theories propose that individuals can legally "separate" from their strawman to avoid obligations like taxes, but such interpretations lack legal basis and can result in severe penalties.

Your Straw Man Is an Artificial Person

At the time of birth, each person is issued their own straw man, legally speaking. On a birth certificate, the name that appears is in all capital letters. This name is a person's legal name. However, people often write their name using a combination of lowercase and capital letters, which is, legally speaking, a separate entity.

Even names appearing on official licenses, such as those issued for marriage, appear in all capital letters. Until the time that a person (name in lowercase letters) reclaims their straw man (the name in all capitals), the state owns the name, not the person.

The Strawman and Sovereignty Movements

The strawman is central to many sovereignty or "freeman" movements. Advocates believe they can assert personal sovereignty by rejecting their strawman identity, claiming independence from government-imposed obligations. These arguments often revolve around birth certificates, asserting they create a separate, state-controlled identity.

While compelling in rhetoric, these claims are unfounded in established legal systems. Courts uniformly reject attempts to disclaim personal accountability by attributing it solely to a strawman entity.

FAQ Section

  1. What is a strawman in legal terms?
    A strawman refers to either a nominal owner of assets to conceal the true owner or an argumentative strategy involving misrepresentation of an opponent's position.
  2. Can a strawman be used legally?
    Yes, in some contexts, such as real estate or business transactions, where anonymity or procedural streamlining is required. However, misuse for illegal purposes like fraud is punishable.
  3. What does it mean to reclaim a strawman?
    This concept often arises in sovereignty movements, claiming independence from obligations through legal separation from the strawman. Such claims lack legal validity.
  4. Why is the strawman concept associated with debt?
    Historically, governments tied the concept to debt management by registering individuals as entities to simplify taxation and liability.
  5. How is a strawman linked to birth certificates?
    Birth certificates are alleged to create a legal identity ("strawman") separate from the individual. This theory, however, is largely symbolic and not legally actionable.

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