Rights, Privileges and Responsibilities - Essay Example

Yet a system of recognized rules and specific regulatory procedures for dealing with unacceptable behavior is needed to prevent violence, exploitation, and pollution. Society would be more guarded and untrusting since there is no recourse if someone wrongs you. The goal of the legal system is to have consequences that apply to everyone to keep order and fairness while avoiding vigilantism and corruption. There are different avenues an individual can take if they are suspected of committing a crime.

Laws are sometimes enforced unevenly, creating distrust among groups of people who are over-represented in the jail system. The people who run the justice system are bound to make errors in judgment or receive inaccurate facts- from the police to lawyers, judges and jurors, and politicians. This does not mean the entire system should be eliminated or ignored, but that you as an individual should act within the law or work to change the law with elected officials. You do this because if you were to be the victim of a robbery or reckless driving, you would want the responsible party to have consequences and pay restitution in some way.

Living in a society in which most other people follow the law, and those that don't are usually punished enforce the social contract and individual has with the state. Citizens of the USA have a fair vote and the ability to speak publicly and critically, which should be the first and foremost channel used to influence the aspect of the law you disagree with. It is unfair to deliberately break a law you oppose without going through the other channels that are available to citizens. It is unfair to the other people in the community, for example, if you choose to speed or drive drunk you are endangering the other people on the road.

Taxes fund road and rail networks, garbage removal, and sewer systems which are part of the physical infrastructure that we all enjoy, which we would not be able to create or maintain through an individual effort. Yet the government bureaucracy is run by people who make important decisions that you disagree with, while others are inefficient to the point of being wasteful. Speaking out and promoting transparency in government is an important way to attain accountability for tax revenue. Government employees are supposed to be working on behalf of the common good of society.

A general trust of government coupled with a demand for transparency for individuals in power is crucial to having a functioning government organization. As an individual I can participate by voting in all elections, staying informed through civil activity, and abide by the law. If I choose to break the law I can be fairly confident of the consequences if caught. Fortunately I, unlike Socrates, do not have an illegal cause worth dying for and believe I can accomplish my goals throughout a long lifetime.