TEACH JUSTICE, NOT JUST "CITIZENSHIP" by Peter Moss Just before leaving the governorship of Illinois, John Ryan freed a baker's dozen of death row inmates because of wrongful convictions, and commuted all other death row prisoners to life. This in recognition that the criminal justice machinery malfunctioned in over half the cases (58% as I recall). The "Ryan Reversal" is having a national effect, as more states are now re-examining capital punishment. At the same time, the search is on for culprits. Overzealous prosecutors, incompetent defense attorneys, unlicensed and substandard forensic labs and "expert" witnesses, and gullible juries are some of the accused in a current NPR piece of investigative journalism. But the people most responsible for the criminal miscarriage of criminal justice, namely the presiding patronage judges and the non-Ryan governors who have wrongfully denied clemency are never fingered by National Public Radio, a federally financed propaganda tool of our rogue central government. No state comes close to Texas in wrongfully denied clemency petitions under its most recent governor; at a minimum, all those executions should be promptly re-tried and retribution properly assigned. In an unrelated development, the National Press Club and a number of South Carolina judges have come out against secret or "confidential" settlements which have caused numerous unnecessary deaths in Ford Explorers on Firestone tires, and many other faulty products. After all, the main function of a just justice system is the creation of effective deterrents to crimes and violations. Again, the responsible patronage judges have gone free. Most Americans dread to go to court, not only as defendants or plaintiffs but even as witnesses, and of all professions, lawyers get the lowest esteem in public opinion surveys. We recall Bobby Kennedy who, as attorney general, said a quarter century ago that the only question about American justice is, how much justice can you afford? Since he let the question hang, I will answer it: the megabillionaire corporations and individuals buy most of the "justice." Presently, high-schoolers graduate and soon become homeowners or renters, spouses, voters, taxpayers, consumers and patients, and their only familiarity with adjudication is a dread of going to court, even as a witness, even for a fender bender. We have a reputation as a litigious nation but the truth is diametrically opposite. The mindless dread of court is an assumption that people go to a lawyer and must put down a $5,000 retainer to begin with. As a result, most Americans "bite the bullet" most of the time and carry their suffering and loss silently through life. Is there a single, simple, practical solution? I believe there is. All high school students should pass a hands-on course in small claims procedure including attendance in small claims court. Once high schoolers lose their fear of court and are ready to prosecute, the Legislature can gradually increase the small claims limit to $1-million. Then the certainty of prosecution would deter all crooks, big and small, almost all of the time. Rhetorically speaking, the crime of the year would be the only crime of the year. And as a bonus, the law schools would close and the lawyers, in and out of black robes, would become extinct. It is our best hope for just justice. If elected, I will introduce national legislation to mandate hands-on training in small claims for all high school students. If average Americans could not adjudicate even now, the jury system could not exist, much less function.