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Finding a moral balance

Looking through the papers, reading the blogs and watching the news would quickly make you wonder what has happened to justice in this country. It is non existent with criminals being let off right left and centre by namby pamby judges. What they hell happened to hang them high judges?

This unfortunately builds up a hard core of people in our society that know they are invulnerable. They do what they want and there is always an excuse. Time after time after time. It will take a massive shift from our government to fix this and when you consider that the percentage of criminals in politics is higher than the percentage over our entire country you accept that it is not going to happen. Soon, vigilante justice will be back. Cue new films such as Harry Brown and Law Abiding Citizen to follow in the footsteps of Death Wish 1 to 100.

Fast forward to a collapse in society. Not necessarily a major one but enough so that plod is not around. Two guesses as to what these hard core criminals are going to be doing. Only now there will be nobody there to pick them up and take them home to mummy. How are we expected to handle this? The government, if they exist, protected by plod and SAS troopers, will be adamant that everything is fine. See how safe they are in their flak jackets, knife resistant coats and armoured limos. So you will get into trouble if a criminal gets upset when you push them away and the punishments will be swift and hard. On you.

The chances are that for a short time law and order will completely collapse. Even ordinary citizens will get away with parking on double yellow lines. When it restarts though it will be something like martial law. That should fix some of the criminals but will get a lot of us also. We just need to keep our heads down and out of the way.

This now brings me on to the discussion about morals and civilisation. Nobody civilised wants to take the law into their own hands but when the law is not doing their job then what do you do? You may have no choice. Could we set up a justice system under those circumstances? Well, if the collapse was long enough then we would have to although a justice system would be fraught with issues and only really be able to be managed in a large community. However, even then is likely to be looked at by brand new officials with 20 20 hindsight at a later date. Better have all the I’s dotted and the T’s crossed if it goes beyond a day in the stocks for anyone.

A long term solution would be to set up a local justice system but the more likely event though would be a short term collapse like riots and rebellion. One where the justice system vanishes but will be back and you could be the one explaining your actions to hang them high judges.

An example then; A young man breaks into your house looking for food he assaults you, your wife and two daughters with a knife but you, by pure luck, gained the upper hand. He is now held down but threatening all of you with violence when he gets up. You know the young man because he and his friends from two streets away have continually stolen items from your garden, garage and car and even though you know it is them no punishment has ever occurred. As he has seen all your stores you now that if you let him go he and his friends will be back and in force. What can you do?

You can’t hand him over to plod. If they existed, they are not interested.
You can’t imprison him. You do not have the capability.

Even if you had local justice? Could any local justice system deal with him properly?

What would you do in those circumstances?

Well, I have my solution. I wouldn’t like it but I see few options under those circumstances. I would guess many would have the same solution.

So, another example; A young man breaks into you home looking for food. He breaks down and cries when you tell him to stop. He is a good kid from a few streets away who is known for helping old people with their shopping and housework. He just wants to go back to his family. He calls you Mr Smith. He has seen all your stores. What can you do here?

Justice will mean something different in those circumstances. Personally, I hope that it never comes to either of those scenarios. Balancing your morals today with a new world will make all of us different people. We cannot afford to keep these morals with us yet they make us what we are. We will need to find a new balance. One that keeps us human but hardens us for the unpleasant things, the ones others do for us at the moment so we can keep our hands clean and take the moral high ground about it. Actions that we will have to do ourselves, even if it is for a short time, as we will have no option.

6 comments to Finding a moral balance

  • Skvez

    Yet another reason for keeping your stores hidden, even inside your home. You really don’t want to be summarily executing people for the crime of “seeing something I wanted to keep hidden”.
    Much better for the burglar to go back to his friends to report that you’re there, you’re capable of defending yourself but you don’t have anything worth taking anyway.

  • Skean Dhude

    Skvez,

    You are right but some times the situation just gets out of control despite your carefully planning.

    Two things to think of.
    1) Once you open your stores for example by breaking down the wall hiding it then it isn’t so easy to cover up again.
    2) Just being alive is a sign that you have access to food somehow. It will mean nothing to them to kill you on the off chance they can find out where you are getting your food from. They lose nothing and have everything to gain.

  • Skvez

    1) Which is why I propose many small stores rather than one big one.
    2) Point taken.

  • Skean Dhude

    Skvez,

    Many small stores brings other issues on the table. A balance is required and that is different for every individual situation.

    I was trying to think of a way to work out the best way to store, one, a few, a lot, of stores generically but there are too many variables. To each their own.

  • Beladonna

    The key to justice is just that, today its not justice thats doled out its punishment, which doesnt cut the mustard, which is why we have criminals. Justice done with the intent to educate is the best way of dealing with people.

    In the two scenarios there would be little difference in dealing with the two people, if they were both dealt with using justice with the intent to educate then the responsibility of whether they choose to take advantage of that education lays with themselves. What is important here is to put in place consequences, you do this and we will accept you, you do otherwise and you become our enemy.

    This also goes hand in hand with protecting what you have including yourself and your kin. If they cant get in then they wont see what you have.

  • Skean Dhude

    Beladonna,

    Justice means many things to many people. I think the issue is that justice is being doled out but not the justice we expect which is punishment. It’s social justice as much as you are poor, unemployed and it is unlikely to change because you didn’t stick in at school so we think that is pnishment enough for kicking some old guys head in because he dissed you by talling you to stop swearing.

    Justice needs to include punishment for breaking laws.