A. John Locke
In Locke's Two Treatises of Civil Government, he stated that <em>"...no government can exists without the consent of the governed and that the primary purpose of the state was to protect the rights of the citizen." </em>
In other words, the government that we the people have set in place, is only in place to ensure that our rights remain with us. Any violation of this "agreement" would be going against what the government stands for, and therefore gives the citizens the right to overthrow it, and create a new government that will protect their rights.
This of course, is the central idea of the right-wing political parties today, and is the root of their idea of a limited government. It was also why the Anti-Federalists back in the day were afraid of giving the government too much power. For if the government becomes to powerful, they may choose to go against this idea, and take away rights of their citizens, which is what happens with authoritarian regimes.
