Not Saying This Is The Right Thing, (But I Can Understand)

With many people losing confidence in the justice system - be it police non-response or judicial activism in favor of criminal rights over victims' rights - could this be a sign of things to come?


In Belfast, Northern Ireland, that is exactly what happened:

Locals had accused the victim, who is in his thirties, of being a drug dealer. And when police allegedly did not act, they took the law into their own hands.

Two masked men tied up the accused victim, poured tar over his head and then covered him in white feathers, apparently from a pillow case.

A small crowd including women and children looked on as the men then adorned their victim with a placard reading: "I'm a drug dealing scumbag".

Now, I'm not saying this is the way to go, but it does send a very clear message to would-be drug dealers (and other criminals) in the area: "Don't do it here." Perhaps if this was one of the tools that the judiciary had in their toolbox of punishments and were willing - and eager - to use it, I guarantee that crime would go down. But I think we have just become too soft.