Random Reflections Pt13

51. If a mountain were to slide down and annihilate a town, that would not be evil. Evil requires consciousness, the willful act to violate the rights or life of another who has not harmed you.

If that mountainslide were to be willfully caused by a person, that would be evil. For society to continue, evil must be punished in proportion to the damage it has inflicted upon society. I say in proportion because too weak a punishment would be the exact same as no punishment at all, and two harsh a punishment would establish tyranny.

This is not law. Laws change, year to year, regime to regime. This is justice.

Law is not written for the good. The good carry the Law in their hearts. Law is written for the bad, so that society may, as a whole, bear the responsibility of enacting justice. Written law is meant to mirror the Law that good men carry in their hearts. But law is written by men, who can be evil, venal, and corrupt. Thus law, like any tool, can be used for good or ill. Laws change, year to year, regime to regime. Simply because a law IS, doesn’t mean it embodies justice. It may be an unjust law. Similarly, actions which enact justice may not be enshrined in the law.Laws change, but justice is justice.

52. I know life is short, whatever time you get is luck. – Neil McCauly, “Heat”

It’s going to sound trite, but don’t wait until you’re dying to start living like it. Within reason, do what you want to do NOW. Or work towards it. The sooner you realize that, the happier your life will be. But I can't MAKE you realize it - you have to want it, you have to have that "aha moment" all by your lonesome.

53. Heroes are not people who save lives. Otherwise, doctors giving flu shots at grocery stores would be heroes.

Heroes are people who RISK their own lives to save others. Who show uncommon valor or bravery to help their fellow men. We talk so much of heroes today, and few other people we apply the heroic adjective to actually deserve it.If, as I have said before, that choice is the only thing worthy of respect, then risking your life with no obligation to do so, knowing that your death, possibly, will have absolutely no merit is worthy of the descriptor “nobility.” There aren’t too many heroes like that these days.

54. Free people will never be equal. People forced to be equal will never be free.

In a condition of freedom, people will never be equal. There will be people who are better than others at certain things. There will be people who get ahead in life when others don’t. Lest we all forget, we are still animals, beholden to the same animal impulses, and we’re still living in a civilized jungle, where the laws of nature still hold some sway. This is FREEDOM. It’s a dangerous, scary thing.We can do our darnedest to equalize housing conditions, income, diet, healthcare, whatever. But in doing so we MUST take from those who are successful, and make beholden to us those who we would raise up.

We can have freedom, or an attempt at absolute equality, but we can’t have both.

(Notice I’m not talking about equality of rights. Everyone’s inalienable human rights should be protected, with no one’s rights greater or lesser than another’s.)

55. There’s been some grumbling in my state’s government recently about how all our college graduates are drifting out of state. There’s also been some grumbling by our college graduates about how tuition rates are unreasonable. Leaving aside the fact that no one in the state should have to pay for the education of a child that is not their own (and would likely have plenty of money to pay for their child’s education if they weren’t paying for everyone else’s), how about this for a plan: Each student can only receive tuition aid if they agree maintain a 3.0 grade point average and will remain in the state for 4 years after graduating.

We all get what we want then, except for the elderly and single people who are putting their neighbor’s kids through college.