Monday, August 27, 2018

2 PARAGRAPHS 4 LIBERTY: #170 “SOMETIMES WE ALL NEED MENTORING”


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When I was a judge on the Municipal Court, a public defender I worked with once told me that, from his experience, the biggest antidote to prostitution was having a job.  That made sense to me so, with his assistance, I set up a probation calendar in which people convicted of prostitution were required to report back to my court and furnish proof that they had submitted their resumes to identified possible employers.  And this would continue until they had found a job and stayed at it for a month.  Well, I am gratified to say, it worked.  Then when probationers were successful in obtaining a job, I would put them on the calendar first where, each time the successful applicants recounted without exception about how much better their lives had become.  In fact, one of them said that she actually went back to prostitution on one occasion thereafter, and actually got sick to her stomach at the degradation. Of course, while these women (I never had any men on the program) were recounting their experiences, the other probationers were listening and, hopefully, being inspired. 
Why bring up this situation in our 2 Paragraphs series?  Because sometimes all of us – older as well as younger – need some mentoring and inspiration to show us that we too can be successful or get back on track.  Yes, we all as adults at least should have the Liberty to go our own way, as long as that doesn’t wrongfully affect other adults from being able to doing the same.  But sometimes as we exercise that Liberty we need a booster shot.  Of course, by the way, all of us also have the Liberty to be that mentor.  And few things in life bring as much gratification!

Judge Jim Gray (Ret.)
--> 2012 Libertarian candidate for Vice President, 
along with Governor Gary Johnson as the candidate for President 




Quote of the Week: “If you scare people to death, they’ll do anything you tell them to do.  Governments have known this since the dawn of time.”  Susan Shelley, Columnist
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