Peter's Viewpoint

The status quo may have just been changed as this was the first time that the rich and famous have been penalized according to their wealth.

An event in a court in Switzerland took place this week when the trial of a very well to do person was convicted of speeding.  Okay, people are convicted of speeding everyday so why was this so different?

The person caught speeding is an established millionaire.  The defendant’s record showed that the driver had broken the law repeatedly and therefore determined that the only way to effectively punish the driver was to assess a penalty according to the income.  The outcome was a fine equal to the amount of 290,000 US Dollars.

This brings another case to mind which concerns the attitude of the rich and famous, that of Paris Hilton.  What do I have against the rich and wealthy?  Nothing but I do despise bad influences and corruption especially when they affect young people creating the imagination that the rich and famous are above the law.
If the court does not want Paris Hilton to suffer staying in a jail cell, maybe they should consider fining her in the amount of say half a million dollars.  That might open her mind while providing additional funds for society.

Although laws are made to protect us and are supposed to be equal, the penalty for breaking the laws are not.  We have seen on more than one occasion that those who well off financially escape the punishment because they had the ability to hire the most expensive lawyers and probably affect the jurors if not the judge allowing them to avoid the final outcome of punishment that the less advantaged would incur.

Are laws made to protect us? I have been driving since I was 16 and have seen laws created regarding the installation of seat belts and air bags and will probably see other new ideas installed in cars that have managed to save people.  Eventually these laws and inventions gave people the ideal that they can drive anyway they want and they won’t get hurt.

So based on this thinking, not wearing a seat belt means that yes you will be fined because the government wants everyone to be protected but at the same time, the seat belt and air bags are like giving drivers more of an excuse to talk on mobile phones without worrying too much about the consequence of a collision.

What would happen if the seat belt and air bag only for the driver were removed from vehicles? 

Now that’s another thought to be considered with fines analogous to income!

A link to the story about the driver in Switzerland.