I read today that the police are belatedly intending to use their powers to deal with boy racers at the Covered Market area. Why they have waited for public opinion to build up to such a level before taking any action is a mystery. However, there is a much more disturbing element apparent if you visit the comments section in relation to this article on the Daily Echo website. There are two comments calling for people to join a national vigilante organisation. This to me is abhorrent but the following has to be taken into regard.
A legal system is an unwritten contract (or a "convention" to use the proper term) which society signs itself up to. The reason for this is that society operates better as a whole if individual citizens forego their rights to seek justice for themselves and instead transfer these rights to the state. The state is then charged with the obligation of overseeing a justice system. All is well so long as the powers of the citizenry are balanced off by the provisions of the state. Problems are liable to arise, however, when the state is failing to uphold its side of the bargain. In this instance people are entitled to question whether the "contract" that they have with the state is equitable, or even valid. This, of course, would lead to the undermining of "the rule of law". My argument in this instance is that the present government IS presiding over the early stages of this process and without a firmer control over crime this will lead to destabilisation of our state. We need to deal with crime firmly and certain areas such as assault and burglary need to be dealt with much more harshly than at present. Only in this way can we re-equate the relationship between state and citizen with regard to crime.

I am in no way here condoning any form of vigilante activity. But what I AM doing is highlighting the need for the justice system to be pulled into a shape that represents the general will of the people. The general will of the people, I would suggest, is for violent criminals, burglars, rapists etc to be locked away permanently. The security of our state is more important than their freedom, or even their life. Therefore they need to be removed so that society can function. This issue needs to be addressed with rapidity in order to preserve our legal process and respect for it. Legislation is nothing more than an expression of the general will of the people. I know that this (and much of the argument above, is from Rousseau. But I believe he was right.