----- Original Message ----- From: "Herbert Graf" To: Sent: Wednesday, June 05, 2002 3:54 PM Subject: Re: [OT]: $1-a-day wages > So you are saying treating a $20000/year person with a $100 fine is the same > as treating a millionare with a $100 fine?? I think people sometimes forget > WHY there are laws, what they are meant to accomplish. If you go under the > assumption that law is supposed to "help" people make certain choices, with > the knowledge that NOT choosing one way will result in penalty, will the > "penalty" of a $100 fine to a millionare persuade his descision? Of course > not, $100 is nothing to him. The situation is completely different with the > other person. "equality" before the law doesn't necesssarily mean that if I > steal a piece of bread I deserve death because a person who murdered a bunch > of people got a death sentence (after all we both committed a crime, and > wshould be treated equally, right?). geez louise... equality before the law, means that everyone stealing a piece of bread, gets the same fine can you really not understand this?? This is basic fair play, from basic common sense, logic. if you don't set up a system that is guided by this idea, you really have a system where anything goes, over the long run someone somewhere will always take it upon himself to determine how the rich guy isn't getting enough pain, or the guy with a hook nose, or the girl with blond hair and big breasts...it becomes out of control, the minute you unhook it from a fixed penalty for everyone, and you have a judge or a bureaucrat dialing up more pain for the unpopular group or individual...to prevent this, you make it the same for everyone -- http://www.piclist.com hint: To leave the PICList mailto:piclist-unsubscribe-request@mitvma.mit.edu