I don't have to answer to you

Posted by Smokey Stover on March 27, 2008 at 19:22:

In Reply to: I don't have to answer to you posted by Cat on March 27, 2008 at 12:04:

: I want to know how to explain to someone the phrase: "I don't have to answer to you"

:You know the word "responsibility," of course. It means, essentially, answerability. If you are responsible to your boss for getting something done, that means you have to answer to him. Accountability is very similar. You have to, say, account for your time if you are getting paid for your time. You are accountable for your actions to whomever put you in a position to take those actions, or to whomever else is appointed to oversee you in some respect. If you are an elected official there are certain to be some annoying people who think you should be held accountable by the electorate, are held responsible for their actions in office, or answerablet to the people that elected them.

"I don't have to answer to you" means simply, "You're not my boss--nor my mother, for that matter."
SS