Or Justice vs. Injustice:
It is a fact of life that we all want justice, especially when it comes to the wrongs committed against us personally. We are raised almost from infancy to adopt an “eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth” kind of mentality. It has nothing to do with our upbringing, but more to do with our falling in line with the current trend in society, which is centered totally on oneself. It’s all about me, I deserve the best and no one has the right to cross me! I will fight for what is mine to the death, mine or someone else’s!
This ideology was brought into reality within the last few months, when a friend of mine’s family suffered a terrible tragedy. One of their four teenage boys, a football player, then 17 and his friend made a horrendous mistake, while messing around early one morning. They picked the wrong car to break into; the owner and his wife heard the noise and gave chase. The owner, a 42 year old man, caught up with the boys and decked one boy with one punch. The other, the son of my friend, had hidden, but came out of hiding and confronted the man. This resulted in a fight to the death, almost; the man used a choke-hold to subdue the boy. He held the boy’s neck so tight and so long, that the boy was unconscious when the police arrived. Months later, the teenager celebrated his eighteenth birthday in a brain damaged and vegetative state, due to lack of oxygen.
Enter, the grand jury to consider possible charges against the man, but at this time no charges have been filed. It appears that the prosecutor had decided not to bring this man to justice and did not present the case in a just manner. Needless to say the boy’s parents and family are devastated, at the present time they are considering what, if any, further action they should take.
It’s quite obvious that the boys are guilty of a crime and should be punished under the law. But does this man have the right to take the law into his own hands and just how far can one go? If we are the victim of a crime, do we have the right to exacted our vengeance right on the spot? This brings to mind a scene from an old Wild West movie in which a posse is formed and when the suspected perpetrator is caught, they are hanged on the spot from the nearest tree without any regard for judicial laws. Is it our right to nearly kill or actually kill someone because they’ve damaged our car? Shouldn’t this man at least be charged with assault? It isn’t as though they were breaking into his home and he had to defend it. Most people would have called the police and let them handle it; by following the boys he put himself in harm’s way.
So where is the justice? Was he justified in his actions or just some hot head acting out? Is justice served in letting him off? Is there no justice for the boy left barely alive and his family? Wouldn’t justice be better served if this man was charged and had gone to trial? It should be up to a jury to decide if he was justified or not, and if he should be punished. These boys will have to face charges for their foolishness and the law will decide their fate, why should it be any different for him? But as it stands now, this is just another case of injustice out weighing justice.
We already have a thing called "Road Rage", what is next? If your dog leaves his droppings on my lawn, do I have the right to kill you or your dog? Have we become a country of lawless barbarians?
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