What separates us from the good and the bad? An orange jumpsuit? Three dirty, soul depleting cement walls and a set of iron bars? Wether religions are implemented or not, the law is the principal means of moral enforcement in any civilized (or so-called civilized) society. The Ten Commandments, the law, human rights and morals are all based upon similar premisses. Being so similar in their nature and the promotion of good intentions, it can be pretty mind boggling to consider the contradictions webbing them all together. Though it has never really crossed my mind before, this idea has however been recently brought to my awareness. I can't stop contemplating all the complications, the injustices and the denials arisen from this idea.
Here, a perfect example of said contradiction:An individual murders an innocent victim. The murderer is proven guilty and either sentenced to life in prison or in many cases given the death penalty.
For some, this is justice - to me, it doesn't make sense. In a society where we fight so hard to enforce the moral principle that every human has the right to live and we therefore shouldn't kill them, how does it make sense to then execute the murderer who is also human and deserves to live? This is a very complicated and in-depth topic. Of course there are many things to be taken into consideration, like wether the murderer is mentally well and such. The law states that it is illegal to kill another person, yet this law is excused in order to enforce itself. In other words, there is a rule. That rule is given however an exception in order to make that very rule. There are many other examples of this throughout the justice system, not only in our society but around the world.
This is prevalent throughout numerous religions as well. If morally we are all equal, despite race, age and gender, how is it that some religions consider women to be lesser or mistreat them, deeming them to be almost sub-human?
More recently in the news, a interesting contradiction of morality and law has arisen. Nineteen year old pink haired mother, Catalina Clouser from Arizona, recently drove her car for nearly 12 miles while stoned, before finally realizing that she had left her baby on the roof of the car. Miraculously the baby went uninjured. The child has since then been taken out of Catalina's custody. When the law got involved, Clouser pleaded guilty to child abuse and DUI, avoiding jail time and only being sentenced to probation. However, an unemployed Arizona mother of two, Shanesha Taylor, who left her children locked in her car while she attended a job interview was sentenced to nearly 8 years in jail. Although both of these mothers did commit felonies, Shanesa's intentions were morally right, striving to ameliorate her life and the lives of her two young children.I don't like using the word justice. To me, it doesn't seem right, it makes me feel uneasy. Its meaning has been lost - or rather can't exactly exist in such a contradictory and intricate world of rules and exceptions.
What do you think?
Referenes:
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-06-02/baby-left-on-roof-of-car/55349990/1
http://www.myfoxny.com/story/25142271/mother-allegedly-leaves-young-children-in-car-during-job-interview
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/30/mother-leaves-her-kids-in_n_2217766.html
The picture you have chosen to post is very touching when coupled with your story. The Law is oftentimes poorly manipulated and you have chosen a perfect example. As you said, Madame Taylor's intentions were seemingly nothing but good and she may not have even been aware of the danger she was putting her children in. It sucks because the verdicts are entirely subjective to the Judge and the Jury's opinions, and had they been more forgiving, her act would have been recognized as what it truly was.
ReplyDeleteGen, the stories that you chose to discuss caused me to really reflect on both scenarios. It saddens me that a mother who seemingly forgot about her child was given less of a penalty than a mother that was just trying to improve her life and that of her children as you mentioned. Thank you for the thought provoking read!
ReplyDeleteI'm very impressed with this post. It really is ridiculous that our laws and our morals have loopholes in order to maintain the social equilibrium. I have a hard time when it comes to my opinion on the death penalty though. Sometimes I believe someone deserves to die for what they have done yet, as you said, I also believe taking a life is wrong and thus I contradict myself. This was very well done!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you! I find our laws make us as bad as the criminal. We create special standards for the government making people expendable and them invincible. It doesn’t make sense how we kill people for killing people! It makes us just as bad. What’s wrong with the world! Great blog!
ReplyDelete