A Skewed Sense of Justice

Justice. Its a word that should bring people to their feet. Its powerful. Its truth. Its a force that brings about light and life to humanity. Or does it?

If any of you dear readers have been following the news lately, I'm sure you'll know what I'm talking about when I mention the Florida Cat Killer. For those of you who have not read up on the case, there was recently a killing spree of pet cats in the Sunshine State. People's animals were snatched from their homes and brutally murdered and dismembered. The 18 year old assailant was apprehended and arrested about a week ago. If found guilty on all 19 counts against him once put up for trial, he could face up to 158 years in prison.

Those of you who follow the news may also remember the tragic events last summer in which 2 Pennsylvania teenagers brutally beat a Mexican immigrant, who eventually died from blunt force trauma. The racially-driven murder attracted national attention because of its sheer ruthlessness. The young attackers, ages 19 and 17, were put on trial for their crimes. They were acquitted of the murder charges and sentences to 6 to 23 months of jail time. Potentially only 6 months. For taking a human life.

Does anyone else see the discrepancy here? Where is the justice? A foolish kid goes around killing animals and faces almost 160 years in prison. Were his crimes disgusting and brutal? Absolutely. And yet, 2 teens commit a racially charged murder and they nearly get away scott-free. Where is the justice? I certainly don't see it.

We brag about our government. We brag about our way of living. The rest of the world is wrong and we are the only ones who seem to have it right, all straightened out and peachy keen. And still, there is no punishment for taking a human life. Yes, they are young. No, I don't believe that their original intent was to murder. However, that was exactly what they did. And somewhere along the lines it has become more of a crime to kill an animal than it is to take a human life. We have certainly lost ourselves. We have certainly forgotten the meaning of justice and truth.

A nation that does not value life will fall. Period. We have murdered millions of unborn babies in the past 50 years. Now, its okay to murder a helpless man who couldn't defend himself. We have forgotten the value of life, how precious it is, and we will pay for that. PETA rained down fire on President Obama for killing a fly during an interview, and yet they didn't say one word about an immigrant who lost his life to 2 bratty teenagers who couldn't see past the color of their own skin.

Silence is a crime in and of itself. And we have developed a skewed sense of justice.