Harry Potter and the Rules

"Yes, but ... they wouldn't do anything against the law to get gold."
"Wouldn't they?" said Ron, looking skeptical. "I dunno .. they don't exactly mind breaking rule, do they?"
"Yes, but this is the law," said Hermione, looking scared. "This isn't some silly school rule .... They'll get a lot more than detention for blackmail! Ron ... maybe you'd better tell Percy...."
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, 568-569.
I find it very interesting that the antithesis being set up here is between rules which count (the law) and rules which don't (silly school rules). Rather than pointing out that rules like school rules and house rules are to prepare children to accept the legitimacy and authority of state rules, we have accepted a dichotomy that says rules at home and school are OK to break, so long as sometime, somewhere, children learn the difference between the ones that matter and the ones that don't. But where are children supposed to learn this difference, as if it existed, if not at home and at school. Why are we surprised when students who break rules at home and school continue their rule breaking after they have left home and school? We have never taught them not to!