The saying used to be Justice is blind”. You might have seen a statue of Lady Justice with a blind fold on to represent this principle, but is it really true? Some people might think that justice has eyes (and hands) wide open for the highest bidder.
It is common knowledge that many politicians lie, and a good number of them have committed crimes that would land an average person in jail. Just think of representative Charlie Rangel from New York. He heads the House Ways and Means committee in Washington. He has serious tax and ethical issues that are likely criminal, but are overlooked by the other politicians.
What about the recently deceased Ted Kennedy? He was directly responsible for a woman’s death, but he got to live out the remainder of his days in the United States Senate with impunity.
While on the topic of South Carolina, how about Governor Mark Sanford? This is the man who disappeared without notice while he went to have a sexual tryst with a woman in South America. Can you imagine what would happen if you just walked off your job for a week and had the people under you lie concerning your whereabouts? You’d be fired.
Sanford is still the governor. Now there are those trying to impeach him, but guess what? One of them is the Attorney General who is running to be elected governor! The same thing for the Lieutenant Governor, Andre Bauer. He’s running for governor too.
There are all kinds of conflicts of interest that threaten the unbiased execution of justice. It’s not just politicians either; the wealthy sometimes buy their way out of trouble. There’s a case in Greenville, South Carolina where a wealthy elite man, John Ludwig, drove his Maserati so recklessly that he went off the road, through a field and through a house! On his way through, he killed a man who was sitting in his living room watching television.
That’s pretty negligent, isn’t it? When police arrived, the man was not tested for impairment. Months later, after money changed hands, he appeared before a retired judge who gave the man probation. Had he been of a different social class, there is the distinct possibility that he would be in prison right now.
What lesson do all of these stories teach us? When you see the news on television or if you hear it on the radio, think about whether justice is really blind. Instead, you may discover that justice favors those with greater means, greater status and greater influence. Unless you are part of one of those groups, and even if you are, you should be concerned about the fairness of justice in America.