personal responsibility

I have been a liberal my entire adult life. I believe women should have control of their bodies, that the death penalty serves no real purpose and that all people should be treated equally. These kinds of things.

But one thing I find missing in this equation in contemporary society is the idea of personal responsibility. We are awash in litigation and high-priced lawyers who skew the justice system and turn defending criminal behavior into a commodity. It’s always someone else’s fault, and blame can easily be shifted. Everybody is a victim, and there is no expectation that behavior has consequences that must be faced.

So a young white man of means commits rape, gets a good lawyer and gets a slap on the wrist so as not to ruin his potential in life. There are too many stories like this that erode justice.

Personal responsibility is not a burden, but rather the means to growing and growing up.