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Fact-checking "The Law That Can Be Named Is Not" by Sam Kriss

Contemporary Legal and Political Claims

Palestine Action and UK Terrorism Laws - FACTUAL

The article's opening discussion of Palestine Action and UK terrorism legislation is entirely factual and accurate:

  • Palestine Action proscription: Confirmed as a terrorist organization under the UK Terrorism Act 2000 on July 5, 2025, following their June 20 break-in at RAF Brize Norton where they sprayed red paint on RAF aircraft
  • Legal provisions accurately described: Sections 12 and 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000 are correctly quoted regarding expressing support, opinions, or wearing items associated with proscribed organizations (14-year maximum sentence)
  • The paradox of unchallengeable law: Kriss's analysis of how the law creates a "forbidden zone" around itself is a legitimate legal interpretation

Historical Legal Precedents (1999-2003) - FACTUAL

All three cases cited are real and accurately described:

  • 1999 Scottish nuclear base case: Three women (Angie Zelter, Ellen Moxley, Ulla Roder) damaged the "Maytime" barge, charged with malicious mischief (not terrorism), acquitted by Sheriff Margaret Gimblett
  • 1999 HMS Vengeance case: Rosie James and Rachel Wenham painted "DEATH MACHINE" on the submarine, charged with criminal damage (not terrorism), eventually acquitted
  • 2003 RAF Fairford case: The "Fairford Five" attacked US bombers, charged with criminal damage (not terrorism), Keir Starmer confirmed as defense lawyer for Josh Richards

US Intelligence Law Claims - FACTUAL WITH MINOR CORRECTION

  • Classified PATRIOT Act interpretations: Confirmed - FISA Court secretly interpreted Section 215 to allow bulk phone data collection
  • Secret addenda to Intelligence Acts: Technically imprecise - only the classified funding schedules have full legal force, though other classified annexes carry strong normative force

Ancient Legal History

Babylonian, Greek, and Roman Law - MOSTLY FACTUAL

Factual elements:

  • Stele of Hammurabi: All details correct including specific law citations (§257 field worker wages, §224 veterinary fees, §108 tavern-keeper punishment)
  • Elamite capture: Correctly attributed to Shutruk-Nahhunte around 1158 BC
  • Draco's harsh laws: Plutarch's quote about death for stealing vegetables is authentic
  • Athenian axones and kurbeis: Correctly described as wooden (not bronze) rotating pillars

Minor error:

  • Twelve Tables destruction: Gauls sacked Rome in 390 BC, not 387 BC as stated

Unverified claim:

  • No evidence found for bronze law plaques specifically at the Temple of Jupiter

Jewish Legal Tradition - FACTUAL

  • Biblical quotes and descriptions of Jewish law's divine origin claims are accurate
  • The 16th-century Shulchan Arukh is correctly dated to 1565
  • However, the specific claim about gallbladder fat prohibition could not be verified in available sources

Anthropological Claims About Secret Societies

West African Secret Societies - FACTUAL CORE WITH EMBELLISHMENTS

Well-documented facts:

  • Poro Society: Real male initiation society in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea
  • Kenneth Little and George Harley: Legitimate anthropologists who studied these societies
  • Other societies: Sande, Yassi, Ekpo, Njawhaw, Isong all documented in ethnographic literature
  • Hamatsa and Suque: Real secret societies from Northwest Coast and Melanesia
  • Brian Hayden: Real archaeologist who theorizes secret societies date to Upper Paleolithic

Embellishments/Unverified:

  • "99 degrees in Poro": No scholarly source supports this specific number
  • Eating one's son to reach highest level: Lacks scholarly verification; likely sensationalized
  • Specific cannibalism details: While some ritual violence is documented, many claims reflect colonial-era sensationalism

The Elizabethan Story - COMPLETELY FICTIONAL

The entire elaborate narrative about Henry Poyntz, Third Earl of Craven, is pure fiction:

All fictional elements:

  • Henry Poyntz, Third Earl of Craven: No such person existed. The Craven earldom was created in 1665, after Elizabeth I's reign
  • "Heretical Bear-baiting": Invented concept mixing real bear-baiting with fictional religious elements
  • John Folcroft: Fictional character (though Brethren of the Free Spirit was real)
  • Laurentius Clung: Confirmed fictional character created by Kriss in multiple writings
  • Coldwheat Hall: No historical record of this location
  • The Isotimians heresy: Completely invented
  • Thomas Starsmeare: Fictional chancellor with no historical basis
  • Connection to Keir Starmer: Fabricated genealogical link as a contemporary political joke

Conclusion

Sam Kriss's article masterfully blends meticulously researched factual content with elaborate fiction. The contemporary legal analysis, historical precedents, and most ancient history claims are remarkably accurate and well-sourced. The anthropological material has a factual foundation but includes some sensationalized embellishments. The entire Elizabethan narrative is pure satirical fiction, designed to test readers' credulity while making broader points about the nature of secret and paradoxical laws. The piece functions as both genuine legal commentary and literary fiction, using the fictional elements to illuminate real concerns about the opacity and self-protecting nature of certain laws.

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