“Unfortunately, the American justice system is just riddled with lies and inconsistencies.”
-Tommy Chong
A Broken System
The American Justice system most of us know is filled with flaws, imperfections, good calls, and too many laws. Today’s system seems to have the reverse of what its original intention was as a system in the first place. We are all guilty until proven innocent in the legal system today. Why has the justice system turned into a business? Why is there such a you vs. them mentality, and how can we bridge this gap, and get back to a system in which you are innocent until proven guilty?
For the past few years the justice system has become a hotter topic of discussion in American politics for several reasons. The biggest reasons are that most people find the current system broken, unfair, and ineffective. For the most part that’s a pretty accurate description. Today’s justice system is set up to collect revenue for the state, and does allow one to draw the conclusion that fees, and fines are set up to punish impoverished communities. Whether one is innocent or guilty, fees will be paid in the name of justice.
Examples Of Flaws
The biggest example of failure in the current justice system is the war on drugs. The drugs have won, plain and simple, and the only loser in this massive money laundering operation is the U.S Taxpayer . The biggest example of this failure is the fact that we have tens of thousands of people in prison right now for marijuana related crimes, when marijuna is now legal in 18 states with 13 more decriminalizing its use. That is over half of the country! Where does that leave people in prison for these no longer crimes. In prison because they were crimes at one time.
Another horrible case of misjustice is in the case of an Arvada Co good samaritan who was shot and killed by police “by mistake” as he shot and killed an active shooter. The officer who killed the good samaritan will not face any criminal charges. This is just another example of how the government protects their own, and justifies wrongful death at the hands of the state. Unfortunately if you do some digging you will see this is a more common occurrence then you would want to believe. Instances like this make you wonder what needs to change. The answer? Well it may be simple; Privatize the police! Hold them accountable by the same laws we all have to uphold!
Hope For Our Justice System
Where is the good in all of this? Well there is some good news to discuss. Two Young men were Acquitted of All charges against them in the name of self defence over the past couple weeks! That is huge! What does it mean? It means that there is still due process in this country. It means that there is still a process that does work! There is also another shining example of jury acquittals for drug crimes that has been gaining popularity as states continue to relax drug laws. That is huge! And gives hope for the future. Where do we go from here?
Well we have to keep challenging, and pushing for change in the system. It is beyond unequal to have a system built on “rules for thee, and not for me”. It is unfair to have a system that buries the poor, and defaults to monetary punishment. We need change, we need blockchain in government! We need to hold our system accountable, and improve it. Not abolish it. We have to take the power away from the government, and not give them more!
