If you were born and/or raised in the United States, you may not realize that the system of government we have is unique. In order to protect the entrepreneurial spirit which originally settled this country, the Founders chose to set up a system where the law was king. Judges and officials couldn't make arbitrary decisions. The law had to be consulted. The law comprised the rules of this game. This was in sharp contrast to most places on earth before America. And even today, a great many countries don't follow this model.

Laws are the rules by which we live. They govern our actions, and they say what we can and can't do. They can be good or bad, but we still go on trial if we violate them. So they're kind of important. But do you know all the laws which apply to you? Ever been to a law library? You could spend half your life reading and attempting to understand the tomes of ever-changing, incomprehensible federal, state and local laws which apply to you.

But wait-- if this is a nation of laws, shouldn't it be that the citizens of this nation should be familiar with its laws and capable of understanding them? Shouldn't you be able to read and understand a contract you're expected to sign in less than an evening? You'd think. But clearly that's not the case. Why?

Who writes laws? Lawyers. Now, just in case you don't know how it works, lawyers are not trained with truth and justice in mind. Those words are used in law school, but the practice of law has little to do with truth and justice. It has to do with superior arguments. It has to do with working the justice system. The guy who argues the best in court, and who can work the system best, wins.

A casual survey will show that most people who are elected to political office are lawyers. These are the folks who write our laws.

Let's think about this. There is a group of people who are trained to argue and work the system, and these are the folks who write our laws and our contracts. Laws and contracts so byzantine and incomprehensible that only the people who write them can understand them. Laws which regulate our conduct.

Imagine the ideal environment for a moment with respect to contracts and law. A contract should be short and understandable. You should be able to read and confidently sign it in a matter of minutes. You shouldn't have millions of incomprehensible and complex laws which apply to you. You should have a few major laws, all of which you should be able to reasonably find and understand. They should be easy to follow. Look at the ten commandments. Not much gray area there. (For a laugh, just imagine the ten commandments as written by a lawyer.)

That's the ideal scene. Is that what you're getting? No? So does it strike you perhaps that these people we hire to do all this are letting us down? If you wanted to press the point, you could probably make the case that they're nearly all engaged in fraud or some racketeering scheme. And I haven't even gotten into all the judges (also lawyers) who make goofy rulings. Unless you're a lawyer yourself, I think you can agree this system of having lawyers in charge of laws and contracts isn't working out. They're just not doing their job for us.

Now, have you ever heard the news media or some other politician discuss the career of a politician who just died or retired? Count how many times you hear the words "sacrifice", "selfless", "honored". Note how many times it's mentioned that this politician did work for "the people of X". You've heard the phrase "public service", right?

Now, let's look at the subset of lawyers who are politicians. These folks have their own health care system, better than the one you have. They have a pension plan way better than yours. They set their own salaries, and can raise them at will, which they usually do. They have huge staffs which do a great deal of work for them. They have expense accounts you only wish you had. Many of the bills which they vote to pass they've never even read. They were read by staff members, if they were read at all. Politicians who retire can usually count on substantial monetary rewards as public speakers, lobbyists, members of boards of directors, etc.

So let me get this straight. You guys get trained to argue, work the system, and pay lip service to truth and justice. You set up a system of laws and contracts only you and your buddies can understand. You go into "public service" as a politician, and continue to do a crappy job. You get more perqs than most people could even imagine. And when you retire, people pay you lots of money and treat you like royalty.

Where's the sacrifice here? Where's the honor? Where's the selfless effort? Where's the public service? The next time you hear about all the altruistic work some politician has done, realize it's all fluff. He's in this game for himself and for his own power and personal gain.

Are there "good" politicians? I don't think it's a majority, but I'm sure there are some. But when I hear a politician "spin" an event (instead of telling the straight truth), or discover that he hasn't read a bill he signed, or find out that he voted himself a raise he didn't deserve, he's on my list.

Here's a lesson about life: Don't listen to what people say. Look at what they do. I don't care if you personally know a politician and think he's way kewl. Pay attention to what he does in whatever legislative body he's in. Because altruism, "service", "honor", and selflessness have everything to do with what someone does, and very little to do with what they say.