Law, Justice and Society: Chapter Two

What does justice mean to you? I find it hard to set a strict definition to this term, because it means so many different things to so many unique individuals. To find out more about justice I would recommend visiting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justice, because it gives you a plethora of definitions and examples of justice. Having there be several definitions which could be assigned to this term, to me justice means getting what you deserve or making sure those who commit crimes are not treated the same as those who live life crime-free. In the text it states that justice is "treating equals equally and unequals unequally." To search even deeper than the mere definition of justice, there are different types of justice: distributive and retributive. I agree with both distributive and retributive justice, because they both seem to cover two very different ends of the spectrum. Distributive justice is sort of believing if you do work for what you want and show that you are deserving of benefits, then you can get it. If you would rather sit on your rump and not do anything, then you should not receive anything since you have done a single thing in return. Retributive justice is finding out who is deserving of punishment. I am a strong believer of making sure justice is served and with that substantive procedural justice is used to make sure that the person guilty is found and pays for their actions.
Jeremy asked a very interesting question when we covered this chapter and it was, "does law just exist or is it socially defined?" As I stated before, it is hard to really set a specific meaning to justice. Since there are so many different cultures and beliefs in this day and age, there are slight differences with everyone. After thinking long and hard about this question I believe law is socially defined. As stated in Chapter 1 post, I agreed with John Locke about how we are all blank slates, but I do believe with that the society helps the government serve the people. This is possible because we as a community decide what is governed as right or wrong. If you trace back to the philosophers you will find that some of them believe that it is the people who make the law. Law is sort of like fashion, you have to stay with the trend of things or you will be completely out of the loop and not have any idea of what hit you, but it is different in the sense that law does not change as much or as often as fashion does. We the people have a say of how we want to live and in the best judgement of the people. I believe in Evolutionary law which is created by human choice. We are not a socialist country nor are we governed by a King or Queen and because of this we have a choice and a say of how our laws are made and the distinction between what is accepted and what is not accepted.