“Law and Order” Has Always Been A Clever Con-Job:
The Sentencing of a Former President Turned Convict Will Illuminate Reality
Thanks in large part to Dick Wolf and his ever expanding roster of primetime television dramas, the most popular three word phrase in America has to be ‘Law and Order.’ I noticed (and enjoyed) all of the cute and clever memes dominating social media immediately after the guilty verdict came down in the New York criminal trial of Donald Trump. These memes featured photoshopped images of Trump in varying stages of trial, arrest, and incarceration. These images were interspersed with pictures of the full cast of characters involved in each of his four prosecutions, all to the catchy and unforgettable tune of the Law & Order television theme.
While we were pleasantly amused by the creativity and humor of the mini-productions, the fact that we all know that Trump will not be punished in proportion to his crimes demands exploration. It forces us to ask ourselves what it really means to be a nation of “law and order.” I am willing to extend the benefit of the doubt to those who frequently use the phrase without really giving it any thought. And I would be a hypocrite if I didn’t because every president I have voted for in my lifetime has employed the phrase on the campaign trail or in office. And if scholarly men like Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden have…
