Magic vs. Government
 

I was reading "Eldest", the sequel to the book "Eragon", and there is a part in Surda where Nasuada mentions the issues of magicians easily bypassing laws, lying, stealing, and cheating without being caught. How could they possibly be regulated, and by whom? Seems like an issue governments would want to adress. (If magic existed that is.)

Magic would be regulated by the government somehow sealing the magical ability of anyone they couldn't bring under their control.

If it involved killing them, fine, they're a threat to "society".

...

What? It's reality, folks.

Magic being used against the government would be problematic for a while.

But once enough people in government had the ability to harness magic as well, it'd be a moot point, right? You just need a higher level wizard (or a pair of equal-level wizards) to investigate and subdue the criminal.

I totally haven't spent the last year (on and off) considering the possibilities, implications, and other details associated with a birth of magic into our world.

Somehow they would find a way to tax it.

The introduction of anything so... powerful, would cause a lot of social upheavel. It'd be like if Mutants a la' X-men started popping up. The only way to stop them would be to impliment anti-mutant force via hired mutants or a catalogging powers, and registering citizens to effectivly combat any 'rouge' mutants (tee hee, I made a funny).

Magic though? I guess the feds would have to start making guns that used magic bullets or something. But it would cuase the government to start taking more control over people's personal lives (big brother is watching), or the government would be destoryed by the magic using mutants.

Yeah. The key is, (in this scenario) magic didn't always exist, it just starts appearing. When a society finally has its roots in the ground, even if it's 'for the better,' or just a completely normal change, it really doesn't want to change. So yes, the 'magic users' would be a minority and would be oppressed/challenged.

Personally, I'd imagine it a lot like Full Metal Alchemist. The way there are State Alchemists funded by the military (with all the important power), and independent ones is a lot how I'd imagine it.

The government could also make Caster Shells like in Outlaw star to combat magic users once they get out of hand. But how do you know if its getting out of hand if you can't even detect them when their right under your nose?

Wizards powerful enough to easily circumvent the law are going to be wizards powerful enough to get the law rewritten to their benefit. They'll either take control of the government themselves, or control it indirectly holding a magic wand to the throat of whoever does run the government.

Their status might be officially recognized, alternately, they might just inhabit an extralegal no-go zone a la the Mafia.

Persecution of wizards will probably happen, but it will largely be persecution initiated by the ruling wizards, carried out under whatever pretext against anyone deemed inconvenient by the ruling class.

Society always reorganizes itself to reflect the balance of power.

I imagine it would be something similar with how psykers are dealt with in 40k. In the Imperium, psykers are taken by the government as soon as they are detected(usually during childhood). They are evaluated. The ones who are deemed stable are carefully trained and used by the government. The rest are shot or sacrificed to the Emperor.

Ok, so maybe without the sacrifical part.