The Spirit Of Law

(Photo by Linus Kertsting)

Figure 11.   Universal

Natural law is the human term for universal law. Its inherent in our being through Spirit—perpetual as our need to seek parity. We know Spirit through observations in nature and our innate sense of conscience in “doing the right thing”. Spirit is the constant catalyst for change in the betterment of Self, family, community, nation, and our planet.

These universal laws are based on the concept of good will toward all. In other words, we have the freedom to live as we choose in that we do no harm to Self or others—free will is responsibility for our thoughts, words, and actions.

Fortunately, we haven’t lost sight of the Spirit of humanity in our implementations of law. Religious, secular, and common law are based on these precepts. One notable exception is the inception of ‘positivism’ philosophy in legal and sociological academia. Here morality is thrown out in the justification of doing what one wants when one wants without any thought as to the metaphysical trauma such actions wreak on themselves or others. A life lived without moral thought leads to no remorse.

(Photo by Gábor Balázs)

Figure 12.   Port

Stalemate

What wasn’t planned for in legal implementations is the incursion of coercion seen in today’s law enforcement and trial proceedings. This may have started during the Nuremberg trials (1945-46). German defendants were tried in Germany by an International Military Tribunal (IMT) held under common law, while adopting the ‘right to not self-incriminate’ from the American constitution. Furthermore, seemingly by mandate, they refused or evaded answers to prosecutor’s questions. Sadistically, none admitted any responsibility for their actions, citing Hitler as the ultimate culprit in that they were “just following orders”.

This subtle mockery of legal institutions everywhere,
paved the way to the highways of crime seen today.

International drug smuggling fifteen (15) years later, financed the alarming rise in arms and human trafficking that plagues our global health and economy; therefore, legal scholars around the globe need to consolidate their funding and research to build a bulwark against the possibility of criminals using the lack of cohesive international law to get away with brainwashing, smuggling, kidnapping, rape, biological experimentation, torture, murder and genocide.

(Photo by Thomas Shockey)

Figure 13.   Honour

The Law Of Dignity

To turn the tide of poverty self worth must prevail. Self-worth cannot swim in a sea of injustice. Persons with no self-worth cannot represent themselves fully to the person who represents them in the legal system that has no respect for persons who cannot pay. Justice cannot be achieved.

Abundance requires passion.
Passion requires acceptance.
Acceptance requires consciousness.
Consciousness is the cornerstone of dignity.
Dignity is the foundation of civility.

Life and law are not separate. The law is not something that happens to us, it is us. The law protects our self worth by defining disrespectful behaviour.

However, access to the law, has been obscured by greed and privilege. Adversarial legal practice is a breach in the fort. Left undefended freedom becomes oppression. The fight for equal access to the law is the fight for dignity and against poverty.

Poverty or absence of self-worth is not innate—it’s learned. It comes from illusion of control. In an effort to control others we lose control of ourselves. Self-control is paramount to maintaining self-worth. Self-worth is the human condition at birth.

Kindness sustains self-worth; intrusion spawns unhappiness. Interference is the original evil. Here we are eyewitnesses to Newton’s third law of motion: reciprocal action.

(Photo by Laura Meinhardt)

Figure 14.   Climb

War doesn’t begin outside, between people or groups, but inside, between Soul and Spirit. It’s the daily war of choice. Unhindered, every soul chooses the good; thus, education is the key that unlocks the prison of poverty: the prison of self-doubt. It trains the soul to distinguish nosiness, to battle interference, and choose to live in conscience. War is not over until each soul wills the good.

Unable to reverse engineer the original action,
we’re left with the reaction: war.

Poverty is a mind-set, not income bracket. Two-thirds Americans, regardless of income, live paycheck-to-paycheck. Poverty is a delusion made from believing prosperity is acquiring what one is taught to want. Unable to accept their birthright—what they have is what they need—the futile search for fulfilment begins.

We must fight to unlearn poverty.

A life of want leads to wantonness. A life of wantonness is unsafe. One person per family living in want renders the whole family vulnerable because there are little or no reserves. Living without a safety net is a life lived in fear regardless of income. Fear is poverty’s mind-set.

(Photo by Tom Fisk)

Figure 15.   Expanse

Prosperity is achieved through security. Where the home is not safe physically, emotionally, or financially, decisions are driven by fear. We are our decisions. Confidence cannot take root and success fails. Success is not survival—it’s life lived generously.

Abundance is found in what we give away—
not in what we attain.

By law the universe exists. The universe is bountiful. We are the universe. Respect for universal law reflects a life in balance. Lives lived outside the laws of the universe destroy peace of mind. Only thoughtfulness produces peace within.

Peace begets harmony.
Harmony engenders safety.
Safety is well-being—
The foundation of prosperity.

(Photo by Íurii Laimin)

Figure 16.   Cyclic

Collaborative Law

Collaborative Law is a legal system based on compassion. It considers the entirety of human experience: physical, mental, and spiritual in its deliberations to understand motive. It recognises the human potential to behave criminally while acknowledging levels of trauma experienced before crime occurs and the residual effect each incident has on everyone involved in its reconstruction and resolution.

In each locality it brings together the disparate professions of crime prevention: psychiatrists; social workers; teachers; journalists; local, state, and federal law enforcement, forensics, medical examiners, coroners, judiciary and lawmakers. Here they work in unison to unravel criminal behaviour and decide the best course of action for each human involved in every violation of law.

(Religious leaders are not included in this list because they assert divine law in lieu of human decree and common law. Yet, utilise those laws and government funding to their greatest advantage, when they deem it necessary.)

The education system incorporates the study of how crime affects the family, community, nation and globe in relevant lessons taught to each age group. Here we recognise bullying as a criminal act.