In fact we have the solution to our problem—and have had it for ages. A jury of our peers is the oldest institution of political liberty. Let us be governed by a jury. This isn’t a quick or infallible fix. It took a couple of juries a number of years to put O. J. Simpson in jail. But juries work well enough to have endured since the Magna Carta. Political campaigns only seem to last that long.
Would juries be better than politicians? Would you rather confront a miscellaneous selection of your neighbors’ dogs or a pack of Rottweilers bred for generations to attack freedom and guard privilege?
I've been on a jury a few times. I was so afraid it might not work in my eyes. I left each one having faith that the jury made the right decision. This was in Cook County.
So I'd say this was a good idea.
If good decisions can be made in Cook County they can be made anywhere in this country.
...But it has to be random--it can't be like the caucuses which vet candidates and dominate on the North Shore. I think they are profoundly undemocratic and do a disservice to the community.
...Maybe the closest approximation of governing by our peers was the Ron Johnson phenomenon.
