Dis[criminate]Criminals

"Life is nothing but a competition to be the criminal rather than the victim."
-Bertrand Russell

Life is perpetuated by money, materials, greed, desire and thrill. What is socially acceptable, inacceptable. What is deviant and what is the norm. As G. Gordon Liddy says: Obviously crime pays or there'd be no crime. Regardless of the crime, small or large, it is committed with rational, thinking and orchestrated to achieve a given goal; be it riches or recognition.

But what is crime... who are we as individuals to judge what is a "crime" of mankind versus a crime in the politically constructed society. What is crime? Drug dealers have been a part of society since the understanding of drugs in relation to capital... murder has been around since hatred... and theft has been around since desire. But what is crime when we look at drug dealers as those providing of a service in an inevitable market. When we look at murder as a cleansing of those deemed weak... or in the end a greater threat to mankind. Or if we look at theft as a way to feed the starving mouth of a child. Charity if you will. Is theft then still a crime?

For those who make it a game... it is those who we must frown upon; but what of those who have made it their lives... for those who have sacrificed it all to live in the world of deception and suffering, often recognized as subhuman. When crime is no longer of choice, but of consequence, of need, of necessity. What then is crime?

Let us question our values, our politics, our preconceptions... our society. Are con artists and frauds any more criminals than our politicians? Is mispending tax money any different than accepting payment for a sought after commodity? When your safety is not being compromised for money by the underside of society, it is being compromised in education, health care and social support systems.

Who are the true criminals and who are you to judge. Who are you to judge a child, a youth, a young adult based on socioeconomic class or otherwise, what kind of person they will become... and based on a single event, for the rest of their lives will they be recognized as criminal. Not discrediting the validity of our legal system, but who are we to judge as free citizens, the legitimacy of a member of society after they have been released from a federal institution for a crime. How do they recieve the label which they may never remove? Are we rightful in holding it against them?

Sometimes crimes are not about the money... not about the goods... etc. Most definitely it pays... and often payment contributes to the crime and it's severity, but what would you do when its the only action in your control remaining to continue to live. To survive... to maintain your status in society... to play a role in natural selection, to show your strength. It's no longer about monetary wealth, but it becomes necessity. How do our laws compensate for those who have not the choice. Not always do you have the choice; but occassionally we are faced with the inevitable. When caught by the hands of fate, we are but puppets to the evil devices which may hold us... and allow us one last breath. As marionettes must we be punished for the strings we could not fight...?

Sometimes... a crime is preventing yourself from becoming the victim... and sometimes... its recognizing a rule broken may be worth the final product. The consequences are often obvious... when you choose to commit a crime... it is slightly different from when you are running from becoming the victim. That is the difference between murder and manslaughter... where do you draw the lines in life...? When do you take the risks... and when do you give in, only to be jailed and held down for the "crime" you didn't commit? When do your wants... your needs... and values surpass consequence?

What crimes have you committed?