KW Lou: Mob Rule

There is a sickness in the land. It is growing. It permeates society’s thought process. It is compounded by the media.

America is into mob rule. There is a new political reality. Rule by the masses, rule by the people minus the rule of law. It is rule by a fickle crowd. The crowd being motivated by demagoguery, passion over reason, absolute freedom of expression, and a disregard for Constitutional authorities.

Mob rule finds its place every 50-100 years somewhere in the world. Examples include the crowd shouting for Barabbas over Christ, thumbs up/thumbs down by the spectators in the Coliseum, the Salem witch trails, guillotining during the French Revolution, lynchings in the Old West, lynching of Blacks in the South, and the cry at the time of Castro’s revolution for people to be placed against a wall to be shot.

Each of the above incidents involved group thinking which controlled the situation. Not law, not justice.

Mob rule is doing what is politically correct at the moment. Not necessarily what is correct under normal circumstances.

There has been a trend in the United States to dance to the tune of  political correctness. It became more stringent in 2008. Almost compelling. The time coinciding with the start of the recession. Most were losing everything. A few increasing their wealth. The 1 percent / 99 percent situation developed. The people increasingly lost faith in government, their  government protecting them. The rules were not working. The law was not helping them.

A gotcha society developed. The people found a last bastion of power. To cry out whenever a major impropriety reared its ugly head. Political correctness has become big time, superseding the rule of law. The law and its place forgotten. The media has picked up on the trend and magnifies political correctness in its news presentations.

A perfect example is Ray Rice.

He beat his wife. Cold cocked her. Terrible. The worst of scum. He was arrested. The law was dealing with him. Concededly his “punishment” was lenient. Remember however, his wife refused to testify against him.

That should have been the end of it. But no, the Commissioner and Baltimore Ravens hierarchy got into it. Ray was a sexist. Not tolerated in today’s society. He had to be further punished. Suspend him! They did out of fear of public retaliation, fewer fans in attendance, etc.

Now comes the film of films. Clearly shows Ray has an inner dislike for women. Otherwise, he could never have hit his wife as he did.

The public shouts out. Punish him further! Punish Commissioner Goodell! Did he know of the video? Had he seen it? If so, when? The media amplifies and adds fuel to the fire. The problem is magnified out of all proportion.

Ray broke the law when he assaulted his wife. The law had dealt with the problem. That should have been the end of it. If the public thought he needed additional punishment, they should have hit Ray and the team in their pocketbooks. Stop attending Baltimore games.

Racism comes into play. Racism and sexism are the two big drawing cards today when it comes to mob rule.

Donald Sterling is the perfect example. A racist from the old school. If he broke a law, he should have been prosecuted. If not, let the public punish him by staying away from Los Angeles Clippers games. But, no again. The crowd called for his punishment. Divest him of his team became the cry. He was. Though amply rewarded with $2 billion.

The same is in the process of happening with Bruce Levenson. He is part owner of the Atlantic Hawks. He recently self confessed to a racist comment made in 2012. He has advised he is therefore selling his interest in the Atlantic Hawks.

I believe the persons mentioned are in a sense victims. As well as whores. Victims of a society that seeks its pound of flesh. A society that has come to believe its government cannot care and protect them. It is a trampled upon American people that needs some satisfaction. They have taken to venting on social evil doers.

Perhaps the mob should go a step further. Why not permanently label social deviates. Recall the woman in The Scarlet Letter. She was required to wear the A for adultery at all times. Themob could insist that the foreheads of racists and sexists be branded with the letters R and S respectively.

Today, racism and sexism. Tomorrow, what? It is a progression.

Legal justice is inadequate. Ferguson one example. Bank CEOs going unpunished another. As long as legal inadequacy continues, mob justice will be substituted.

I am worried about the direction our country is taking. So are most of you. In these times, it is well to keep in mind Biblical admonitions. God knows best… Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.