On 19Jun2020 1318, Phil Pugliese - philpugliese at yahoo.com (via tml
list) wrote:
> Funny how there was no mention of all these 'preconditions' until
> *after* Dulinor did his deed.
> Like I said before, it's almost as if someone, or more than one, at
> GDW said;
> "Hey how about we have everyone go KA-RAY-ZAY and start busting
> everything up?"
> "That'll sure shake things up won't it?"
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> On Thursday, June 18, 2020, 11:01:56 AM MST, xxxxxx@gmail.com
> <xxxxxx@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> The precedent isn't what saves you. It's the vote in the moot. The
> precedent is the post-facto legal framework to make it not a crime
> when it clearly should always be a crime. That 'old precedent' was
> claimed on a number of occasions albeit perhaps only recognized
> once... that's because it is not itself really a law - it is the
> tissue that the moot uses to wipe the Imperium's bum when they choose to.
>
The first library supplement (1980, 1981) mentions Cleon the Mad being
assassinated by 'surviving members of the government'. That later become
called 'by right of assassination', and as claimed by Dulinor it had to
be done by the person who claimed the throne (the reward for doing the
Moot's dirty work, I suppose). It was supposed to only be done after the
Moot had (secretly, one assumes) authorised it, but I think it likely
many were 'authorised' after the fact. Certainly Dulinor seemed to think
he could get it retro-actively legitimised. Then he fled, and there went
that.

The thing is, based on Imperial history Dulinor had every reason to
think a clean assassination would fly, as it had been done many times
before. Of course it also went badly sometimes (resulting in the
Emperors of the Flag, etc.).