Tell a judge "rule this way, because it's moral" and he'll tell you to get out of his court. (Modulo cronyism and the possibility that a judge is prejudiced and/or crooked).
Having an argument based on law is much harder to argue against than someone's personal set of moral values.
Looking into cultures where "legal" things are decided with a moral system (e.g., most theocracies) I see a lot worse stuff going on. I'm not trying to minimize the nasty and disgusting surveillance system the US has in place, I'm just saying that rule by morality is a double-edge sword.
Having an argument based on law is much harder to argue against than someone's personal set of moral values.
Looking into cultures where "legal" things are decided with a moral system (e.g., most theocracies) I see a lot worse stuff going on. I'm not trying to minimize the nasty and disgusting surveillance system the US has in place, I'm just saying that rule by morality is a double-edge sword.