Everyone drives at or below the speed limit on the freeway, right? Of course not. Why do people drive above the speed limit? Because the speed limit is inadequately enforced, and they are pretty sure they can get away with it.
People always stop for red lights, too. Like hell they do, and when a city installs cameras to catch them breaking the law by running red lights they cry “foul” and claim that because they do not like the method that was used to catch them breaking the law then they should not be punished.
Oil companies break safety regulations in drilling for oil because the government agencies responsible for enforcing the regulations are not doing enforcement, and the same people who are driving over the speed limit and running red lights are outraged that companies would violate the regulations which are not being enforced.
There is at best a tiny outcry against the agencies who are failing to enforce the regulations, about the same amount of outcry as there is at the lack of police enforcing the speed limit.
The vast majority of the vituperation is directed at those miscreant corporations who felt that the law did not apply to them, who felt that they could drill in any manner they wished merely because there was not a police officer looking over their shoulder at the moment.
I’m not entirely sure what I’m trying to say here, but if we want to be a nation of laws then shouldn’t we actually be a nation of laws?
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