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“It is more important that innocence be protected than it is that guilt be punished, for guilt and crimes are so frequent in this world that they cannot all be

“It is more important that innocence be protected than it is that guilt be punished, for guilt and crimes are so frequent in this world that they cannot all be punished. But if innocence itself is brought to the bar and condemned, perhaps to die, then the citizen will say, 'whether I do good or whether I do evil is immaterial, for innocence itself is no protection,' and if such an idea as that were to take hold in the mind of the citizen that would be the end of security whatsoever.” - John Adams

darksaints 6y ago
A wonderful quote. I can't help but see the similarity between this quote and the words of a 90 year old BLM protester that I met in Seattle recently: "No, I don't really care about the looters. Let them take what they want. Because it doesn't matter. Nothing matters anymore. Because guilty or innocent, if they're black, they're gonna end up in prison at some point before they die. Just like I did. For 24 years."
- rimliu 6y ago
  So he was innocent and spent 24 years in prison? Or was he just trying to downplay his own responsibility?
  - darksaints 6y ago
    He claimed he was innocent, and I think I believe him. My therapist does some work in the state prison system, and he told me once that most prisoners go through the full 5 stages of grief usually within a couple of months. And by the end of those stages of grief, it is no longer painful for them to accept and openly admit that they committed a crime. He can only recall two long term prisoners that he worked with that refused to admit guilt after a year in prison...one of them has already been fully exonerated (not commuted, but actually cleared of all guilt), and the other was recently granted a retrial. Anecdotal, sure, but I find it believable.
duutfhhh 6y ago
This mindset is prevalent in the senior management ranks and I'd say this mindset is a prerequisite to climb the social ladder. Poor people believe in rules and think that good behavior will get them a better life. Rich people know that there are no rules, only competition, and every move, including breaking a "law", has a risk-reward ratio. Our current US administration is a caricature on this mindset.

darksaints 6y ago

A wonderful quote. I can't help but see the similarity between this quote and the words of a 90 year old BLM protester that I met in Seattle recently: "No, I don't really care about the looters. Let them take what they want. Because it doesn't matter. Nothing matters anymore. Because guilty or innocent, if they're black, they're gonna end up in prison at some point before they die. Just like I did. For 24 years."

rimliu 6y ago
So he was innocent and spent 24 years in prison? Or was he just trying to downplay his own responsibility?
- darksaints 6y ago
  He claimed he was innocent, and I think I believe him. My therapist does some work in the state prison system, and he told me once that most prisoners go through the full 5 stages of grief usually within a couple of months. And by the end of those stages of grief, it is no longer painful for them to accept and openly admit that they committed a crime. He can only recall two long term prisoners that he worked with that refused to admit guilt after a year in prison...one of them has already been fully exonerated (not commuted, but actually cleared of all guilt), and the other was recently granted a retrial. Anecdotal, sure, but I find it believable.

duutfhhh 6y ago

This mindset is prevalent in the senior management ranks and I'd say this mindset is a prerequisite to climb the social ladder. Poor people believe in rules and think that good behavior will get them a better life. Rich people know that there are no rules, only competition, and every move, including breaking a "law", has a risk-reward ratio. Our current US administration is a caricature on this mindset.