Unfortunately, We Don’t Give a Damn
I volunteer on Quora.com to answer questions on renewable energy, and, even though I signed up for that specific category, I come across some really stimulating queries that are totally unrelated. Today, for instance, someone asked: What’s the weirdest aspect of your culture?”
It’s really hard to know where to start on that one. Obviously, I could have named one-off oddities like Americans’ bizarre interest in NASCAR racing and professional wrestling. But I think the larger issue is that, by and large, we don’t give a damn about the suffering of other people—and especially if those people happen to be poor. To me, it’s positively spooky how we disassociate ourselves from other peoples’ misery.
Here’s a story I came across this morning, about the town of Sherwood, Arkansas (one of many across the country) that raises millions of dollars per year by running debtors’ prisons, i.e., incarcerating people because they can’t pay a fine for a minor infraction, then imposing hundreds or thousands of dollars in court fees, meaning that they’ll be in and out of jail indefinitely, as they are unable to pay off these spiraling debts.
An ACLU spokesperson described several cases, e.g., a women who just spent 35 days in a county jail after she accidentally bounced a $29 check five years ago. Nikki Petree (pictured above in happier times) was sentenced to jail last month by a judge accused of running a debtors’ prison. She had already been arrested at least seven times over the bounced check and paid at least $600 in court fines; her current debt is over $2500. Apparently, the Sherwood police prefer to arrest victims at work rather than at home; Petree has lost two jobs because of these spectacles.
According to the spokesperson, Kristin Clarke:
In 1983 the Supreme Court made clear that this is unconstitutional, that you can’t lock people up merely because they are poor. But what we’ve seen is the resurgence of debtors’ prison, because there hasn’t been enough enforcement to put a check on court systems like the one in place in Sherwood. So we filed this lawsuit to bring an end to an era that’s been marked by a court system in which one judge presides, Judge Milas “Butch” Hale (pictured right), where he has disregarded the due process rights of poor people at every turn.
What happens in Sherwood is that people get on line outside his courtroom. They are forced to sign a waiver of their right to counsel. Nobody is allowed in that courtroom but the defendants. If you come with a family member, an advocate or friend, you’re not allowed in. There are no tapes or recordings of the 
proceedings, no transcripts of the proceedings. (If you’ve retained an attorney, but most) people appear without counsel by their side. No one explains their rights to them. And every time they stand up before Judge Butch Hale, he imposes fine, fee after fine and fee, and court costs on them, subjecting these people to a spiraling cycle of debt. This is a court that preys on the most vulnerable people in Sherwood. And they make a profit off of this.
Now, of course, anyone with a heart is rooting that:
The lawsuit is successful. After all, setting aside the obvious morality/decency aspect of this, we do live in a country with rule of law; municipal courts can’t override the US Supreme Court. We also have a “due process” clause in the 5th Amendment, an “equal protection” clause in the 14th Amendment, and lots of criminal statues that address violating human rights.
Criminal charges are brought against Judge Hale. He’s convicted, and he goes away for a very long time. My parting words for him as he enters prison will be: Welcome to the life you deserve, ass****.
But back to the main point. There is almost zero scrutiny placed on the justice system as it applies (or misapplies) to the very poor. Why? I hypothesize it’s this: Most of us are too concerned with our own lives and solving our own problems, and we grow up and live in a culture built around the maxim: let us ignore the needs of others.
Of course, this ties into all matters of environmental and social justice. For instance, Americans and other people in countries with high per-capita levels of carbon emissions are far less concerned about climate change than those living in the rest of the world. Again, I surmise this is due to the fact that people in rich countries are going to suffer from the effects of climate change far less than those in the developing world, coupled with the sad fact that most people simply don’t give a damn about those people.
My wife is going to hate this one, as it’s depressing. I grant that it’s depressing, but it’s true, and I think it’s important.
If rich people really think that they can escape the consequences of global warming, they are in for a very nasty surprise. They may be able to avoid the problems for a while, but eventually it will catch up with them.
In answering the same question I think I would have looked for some aspect of the culture that presented a paradox.
For example, as I was driving today I was struck by the brief image of a woman sitting alone on the curb at the side of the road (as I drove by.) She did not appear to be ill or mentally challenged. The area was somewhat suburban. There she sat alone looking at her phone. And through that device no doubt she felt connected to a community. For the moment it had become more real than her physical surroundings. So there she sat surrounded by her community and alone.
John Oliver on his program “Last Week Tonight” (HBO) has done pieces on “municipal violations” and “Prisons.” He is a satirist, admits he “owes everything to John Stewart” who in turn compared his efforts to Mark Twain from a century ago. They poke fun but try, it seems, to not get too serious. They want to challenge their audience, but if it is too dark, if it is too much then this also can turn the audience away.
John Stewart presents an interesting case. Although I have never met him I feel for his plight. An intelligent man forced by his profession to review countless examples of human failures. “Turd mining” he called it (publicly) as he left Comedy Central.
Years ago people complained that a phone in the home was an intrusion into family life. Perhaps the same was said about the radio but certainly the TV was criticized for decades. Edward Murrow was part of the debates over whether the TV should be primarily educational or for entertainment. Today you can still find documentaries and other educational material but you are going to have to look to find it.
In the last several decades we have seen multiple generations of recording media for sounds and then also video. The industry of distraction has been moving faster and faster into what was once coined “Future shock.”
And so we have a woman sitting on the side of the road unconcerned about prisons or municipal violations unless it becomes popular on her smart phone. And somewhere along the line the ability to receive information has become confused with entertainment and seems to have mostly supplanted the ability to process and understand.
No Craig, I think I would have picked a paradox, and rather than anger or outrage it would have filled me with a profound sense of sadness, and maybe just a little respect, a bit like being present when a life shuts eyes on its last day. I know that there are some things and some places where I have have an effect and then there are others where I am just an observer like traveling in a car passing the woman sitting on the road.
Craig,
Judge Hale would appear to be in violation of so many amendments to both the US and Arkansas Constitutions.
Shame on the voters of Sherwood the elected politicians all they way to Governor Asa Hutchinson. The Governor is a lawyer, and although not very politically liberal, he has consistently advocated maintaining strict and correct judicial procedures and protocols.
However, I fear Judge Hale may not be headed for prison. Judges are usually indemnified from penalties, even if their decisions are bizarre or unjust. To send a Judge to gaol requires evidence of corruption for personal benefit, Being an ass…., or even barking mad, usually isn’t enough. In this case, Judge Hale is being sued in an individual capacity solely for the purpose of declaratory relief.
Judge Wade has held his position for more than twenty years ‘inheriting’ the position from his father who occupied the post for 26 years.
It’s curious none of these cases seems to have ever been appealed. Perhaps the defendants were to poor or ignorant, but surely some pro bono lawyer would have acted to appeal these decisions and filed a writ of Habeas corpus and appeal estoppel pending a bail hearing.
Where you might ask, was the office of Public Defender during all this time? Well, it appears that despite the City of Sherwood and County of Pulaski having a team of prosecutors (including one dedicated solely to Judge Hale’s ‘hot check’ court), the City and county saves money by contracting with a local lawyer as a part time public defender, who just happens to be related to Judge Hale, and rarely appears in such matters !
Governor Hutchinson has the power to stand Judge Hale down and initiate a judicial inquiry into the conduct of his court and the administration of justice in the City of Sherwood and County of Pulaski.
He should consider such a course of action,to save the taxpayers from punitive damages.
Shame on the voters of Sherwood !
I appreciate your comments, but I hasten to point out that, though judges may be “usually indemnified against penalties,” that’s not always the case. Here’s the poster child for all this: one of the two the judges who accepted bribes from the owners of a privately owned prison, in exchange for sentencing juvenile offenders, many of them garden variety marijuana users, to extraordinarily long terms in that facility. If you want to challenge me on this, you may want to speak with the fellow himself. But, outside of a visit to the prison in which he now rots, you’ll need to wait 28 years. He’s in his 60s now, so that’s probably not going to work. Totally fine with me. It’s hard for me to think of anyone I hold in that level of contempt. As I wrote in my post, “Welcome to the life you deserve, ass****.”
Btw, to blame this on the ignorant people of Sherwood, Arkansas doesn’t add too much clarity. According to the article I quoted in my piece, this is endemic to many rural redneck towns all over my much-beloved country.
@ yes Sir Craig
This is a much Under reported narrative in this decadent consumer society that is too caught up in chanting USA USA while the foundations of USA are crumbling all around them Indeed!
Ignorant RED Neck and RED Voting States have lots of these excesses and Illustrate the Moral bankruptcy of their Fedualistic oriented policys. That is the whole Truth. The so called Freedom party is exposed for the type of Freedom they really stand for
That is the Freedom of the Powerful to hold sway over all others and freedom to exploit, persecute, harm and hold down others.
They have CONNED too many Americans into accepting a divided class oriented society , excessive consumerism and a culture of me me me and self gratification. They will not awaken until they are shocked out of their comfort zone, and that may not turn out well either.
As Frank said the Uber Rich may think the Gated Community and I say the Casino Carnival called the Stock MARKET will shelter them from the negative impacts of global warming etc. They are in for a Rude Awakening. One of my aspirations left in my Journey is to see the rich suffer and be humbled like the masses. Poetic Justice long overdue.
Bread and Circuses , Snap chat, Twitter , Excessive Facebook and similar electronic diversions along with Venture Capital funded tech firms that dont have more than a empty concept with nebulous real utilitarian value yet remain the dazzle of the masses as there is green bucks floating around and they think the heavens will shower them too w some. This keeps many of the american people overly stimulated and seduced that they too will be Rich one day; so they go along to get some and turn a blind insensitive eye to our many short comings.
Many Enlightened people say that our condition is beyond the point of conscious ( lets hope not) They say that the masses are not capable of recognizing real reality when it confronts them let alone give a real care to their fellow man or woman. Root Analysis is not in there Vocabulary. Thus they continue to VOTE against their Own Best Interests so the Carnival plays ON !!!
Now the class difference comes into view here as the lower and middle income people still have the better human traits of social concern and do what they can for others. it is the upper and oligarchic plutocratic classes that are deeply insensitive to the plight of the poor etc.
So perhaps one day there will be a clash of the opposite ends of the society! ?
Ironically I spent over an hour on the phone this morning with dear friends talking about related social and economic ills. We had NY, Denver , LA and me in the SW of Texas , all very educated and seasoned in the business world . A good micro sample perhaps. We were discussing the economy and social conditions of America, etc. All in agreement that we live in a Country that has a extreme deficit in real Morality, Spirituality , Good Humanity and Financial soundness . We allowed ourselves to not listen to a decent GOP president and former General who warned us not to become burdened by the military industrial complex. We did not listen to him and the rest is the Ongoing Sorrows of Empire and its negative cultural impacts and consequences.
To live beyond this Bankruptcy each of us has to strive to not let this Awareness that America is NOT A Shining City On a Hill trap us into depression and inaction or self preservationist mode. Each trys in their own way to live counter to the false narrative of modern America.
Thanks Craig for sharing this, I had 3 school friends who each got 25 year prison sentences for a few marijuana joints in Texas back in the early 1970’s. Most of them served close to 10 years. Each survived by enjoying the good quality Mexican Grass that guards would smuggle into the prison. The Irony of that. Do 25 years to be able to smoke weed ! Only in America !! LOL That is the Legacy of our failed system of courts and justice and proportionality of sentences relative to the seriousness of the so called crime.
Perhaps the callousness of our society is explained and the point made when we look at the Criminals of Wall Street who looted Billions upon Billions of Dollars etc and none went to prison other than that Bernie dude who was a Token fall guy.
They all avoided prison and many got more Tax breaks !
Don’t see hordes of angry white people running in the streets calling out for justice , no you see them out there screaming support for a Fascist and Racist Buffoon of a Candidate for President.
So as Togo once said We have met the Enemy and it is ourselves !
This topic runs deep within my Journey and it is so Sad. Forgive the length.
Craig this is a important post you made and it is seriously under reported. The Rot from Within as the Communist rulers once said about America we are rotting from within.
Maybe a Visionary leader can arrive and Rally the Masses to the right side of things but I am not betting on it. Too many people just dont give a Damn !
Amen