| From: | ANGLISS BRIAN EDWARD <angliss@****.Colorado.EDU> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Re: More discussion |
| Date: | Wed, 27 Mar 1996 23:24:01 -0700 (MST) |
>>>>>[Mr. Lynch, I was aware of the leak and the individual who was
responsible has been suspended until her disciplinary hearing.
You are an idealist, Mr. Lynch. You speak of eliminating the disease,
and I assume you speak of the injustices of corporations and do so,
according to your conscience, without regard for the law. But as you
have taken Nietzsche's words to be your guiding principles, or perhaps
as a personal warning, so I have taken the words of several people to be
my guiding lights. Theodore Rosevelt: "No man is above the law and no
man is below it; nor do we ask any man's permission when we require him
to obey it." Or perhaps Sophocles would be more appropriate to this
particular situation: "There are times when even justice brings harm
with it." You harm the very laws and beliefs you hold to your heart even
as you deal out your particular brand of justice. Vengeance for
injustices, while it has a long and questionably distinguished history,
is something that I cannot condone.
The reality of the world is that the corporations are merely a symptom of
a disease themselves, and that disease is the destruction of honor,
integrity, and personal responsiblity, as well as intolerance and hate. I
leave the repairing of the social rifts to those who want to try while I
live my life and perform my job as well as I can within the constraints
of the law. There have been more times than I care to count when the law
prevented Special Branch from pursuing a criminal, yet only rarely have I
been tempted to exceed my authority or break the law, and only 4 times
since I joined InterPol have I done so. Each time I have presented
myself before a disciplinary hearing, yet the panels have never ordered
me disciplined, for reasons I do not completely understand myself.
You and I both treat symptoms, Mr. Lynch.
For yourself and those like you, InterPol serves to keep you on your
toes. From my perspective, however, Special Branch serves to remove what
I see as a threat to the proper functioning of society. You are not
alone as a threat, of course, but you are as much a symptom of the
degeneration of society as the corporations you fight and the injustices
you avenge.
I cannot deny that the law is not perfect, and that people make mistakes
in both enforcing them and making them to begin with, yet what danger we
face if we selectively chose to enforce those laws we agree with while
ignoring those we do not. I personally find that various anti-drug and
prostitution laws to be irrational, yet were they within my field of
operations, I would enforce them all the same. I cannot know what I
would have done were I involved with InterPol during the "Re-Education
camps", but I would not have thrown away the law as you stated. I
suspect, upon much reflection, that I would have turned in my badge and
found some legal means by which to protest the camps. Would it have
mattered in the end? I doubt it. But where you break the law when it
suits you and your purposes, I would not, and if I did so, I would turn
myself in to the proper authorities. That is the biggest difference
between us.
You and I will not convince each other, Mr. Lynch. Perhaps you believe
that I have sacrificed some of my humanity in order to operate as part of
a system that is horrifically imperfect, corrupt, and often extremely
unpleasant. Even if you do not believe that, I have sacrificed some of
myself in the process of becoming who and what I am today, even ignoring
the mechanical parts which have kept me alive. To me, that was
sacrificing my humanity for a greater good, that of maintaining social
order and enforcing the multitude of laws in this world. I have claimed
that you have sacrificed your humanity because the choices you have made
led you to exit the position as a productive member of society, even if
the society is a little fragged these days. The choice to leave the law
behind places you outside of society, and that sacrifices some of your
soul in the process. Perhaps less than working as a corporate guard, but
a sacrifice nonetheless.
Where you cannot see the law with any inherent virtue, I cannot see
justice as anything more than, as Plato said, "the interest of the
stronger." The law, while not set in stone anymore, certainly is
something solid enough to place faith in, while justice is in the eye of
the beholder.
Mr. Lynch, I do not approve of politics on general principles, but as you
said, where I cannot be bought, my superiors can, even if I can never
claim so publically. I recommend that you search your databases
regarding Special Branch's rules of engagement. When the orders came
down, I was ordered to provide my agents "maximum latitude" regarding
your apprehension. While InterPol is never "shoot first and frag the
questions," this is about the closest it ever gets. If my men find you,
they will bring you in.
I ask you a question, though, regarding a comment you made. You took an
oath to protect the rights of the citizens of the UCAS. What, truly, is
more threatening to the UCAS's, or even the world's, citizens, the
corporations you fight, or the lawlessness you foster in the process? I
suspect I know your answer, as you know mine, but I would like to know
regardless.]<<<<<
-- Commander Drake, InterPol <23:22:13/03-27-57>
