He did respond and gave a clear real-world analogue to this scenario. The DAO is an investment vehicle, so he compared the use of the DAO code to abscond with the funds to the following financial contract example:
> Say I raise investment under contract with all my investors, and I included a little provision no one reads that says I can appropriate all or part of the investment. Wouldn't you know it I absconded with their investment. My investors sue me and I file an affirmative defense of No Breach of Contract and introduce the Contract which expressly states I can appropriate my investors money as I see fit. That contract will not be enforced, are we in agreement?
Personally I don't understand the people acting like "smart contracts" exist independent from an existing judicial system (or systems) just because there's computers involved. I guess the same people excited for cryptocurrency are largely the same people who don't believe in government so the whole point is to somehow be independent of any legal jurisdiction.
