Friday, May 29, 2009

Rule-Of-Law

Respect for the concept of Rule Of Law is one of the primary indicators of an advanced civilization.

Look at the rampant corruption in Mexico. It is a part of the culture down to the most basic level. Everyone in Mexico participates in it. And because of this open lack of respect for the Rule Of Law, Mexico is well on its way to becoming a failed state.

Democracy means that after the voting is over there is a peaceful succession to the next leader with no rioting or looting. There is no way this can be effectively enforced from the top down by law enforcement personnel. It has to come from the bottom up. A basic acceptance and support by the general populace that everyone should follow the country’s laws and regulations.

Rule Of Law means that everyone must have a valid driver’s license, and liability insurance in force if they are going to drive a motor vehicle. It also means that all drivers agree to pay the required fees to keep their vehicle registration and safety inspection certificates current. Finding ways to slip around and not pay your taxes, or intentionally running red lights and trying to evade automated traffic cameras clearly shows a gross disrespect for the concept of Rule Of Law.

It implies that everyone else should follow these rules, but that “I am so important and special that I stand far above all these silly rules.”

Legislators certainly play a part in this. Their passing of laws with which the vast majority of the populace do not agree, actually encourages open disrespect for the idea of rule of law. Some examples are the laws prohibiting the possession and consumption of alcoholic beverages during the historical period of the nation which is now referred to as “prohibition.”

The now defunct 55 mph (88 km/hr) speed limit on Interstate highways is another example. This was a very poorly thought out attempt to encourage conservation and reduce the country’s dependence of foreign oil. A far more intelligent approach to this problem is the way that other countries have dealt with it. Simply impose high taxes on motor fuels like gasoline and diesel. Maybe even several dollars per gallon. This is a vastly more effective way of encouraging energy conservation. The government can also impose large taxes on buying a gas guzzler and tax credits for people who buy a socially responsible car which gets good fuel economy. The same applies to the annual registration and licensing fees. Wasteful cars pay much higher annual fees than those vehicles which are more socially responsible.

The additional taxes also mean that the government now has adequate revenue to implement things like universal health care.

Another way to make enforcement of generally accepted traffic laws work effectively is to make the traffic fines be variable, based upon one’s ability to pay. For example, in the country that I lived and worked in for 15 years, if you are caught driving faster than 100 mph (160 km/hr), the fine is that you forfeit your car. The government now owns your car. This makes the fine appropriate whether you can afford to drive a 15 year old BMW which is worth $1,500- or a brand new 911 Porsche or Ferrari which cost well over $100,000-.

I don’t completely agree with this, but some people would say that the way America sends people to jail for possession of small amounts of marijuana falls into the same category.

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