Soap Box

For several years I have had a tacit agreement with a high teacher in New England whereby several times a year he takes questions from his students and forwards them to me and I send my answers back.

The questions deal basically with opinion pieces I have written about politics, international affairs and social problems and the questions these teenaged students ask can be introspective and thought provoking and sometimes represent a whole different point of view when looking at them through eyes of a young person.

The last batch I received included a question that I was unable to adequately answer. A young lady asked why the rich and influential are not held accountable to the laws of the land, why they seemingly get away with just about anything they do, and she asked if money was everything.

I wrote back that money was not everything, but that the affluent were able to hire the best legal talent available, but the answer seemed hollow to me and I felt that the young lady deserved a better and more definitive answer, and I truly don't have anything close to the quintessential explanation.

I do know that according to our most cherished documents it's not supposed to be that way.

The ones that declare, �That all men are created equal� and should be considered so under the law. 

The sad upshot of the situation is that we are raising our children in a world where it does seem at times that money is everything, that it enables the people who have it to wield a type of influence and power than insulates them from obeying the same laws and regulations that the rest of us have to abide by, to cut to the front of the line so to speak.

Should the impression of justice in the eyes of a young person be that it is meted out in accordance with the amount of wealth and power one possesses?

But isn't that true to a large extent in America?

Should presidential fiats and biased congressional findings absolve politicians and government operatives who broke the law from prosecution and punishment? 

Recent events involving the IRS and the ex-Attorney General, among others, have demonstrated that if you have powerful friends you can skate and laugh in the face of those who were hurt by what you did. 

We all know it happens, the behind the scenes mutual back scratching, from fixing a parking ticket to belonging to the same country club as the judge you stand before, to procuring legal talent that 99% of America could never afford, attorneys who are capable of pulling out all the stops, ethical or otherwise.

We could just say it�s a fact of life, that them that�s got is them that gets, it just goes with the territory or a dozen other worn out old saws that allow the rich and powerful a special place in society, gives them license to live by a different set of rules than the rest of the world.

Justice is supposed to be blind, but it seems the blindfold slips from time to time when rich and well-connected people are brought before the bar.

Unfortunately, this problem cannot be legislated away because the only answer lies in the hearts and consciences of man and in a nation that has all but turned it's collective political back on the God who initiated justice the goal of a level playing field for all people grows dimmer each day.

So, young lady, I wish I had a better answer for you, but the only advice I can give on the subject is, practice fairness in your own life, make your little corner of the world a better place.

Really, it all boils down to �Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.�

What do you think?

Pray for our troops and the peace of Jerusalem.

God Bless America

� Charlie Daniels

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