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THIS is why we are in trouble and not getting out of it. Too much money is spent for nothing. We have become a nation that costs too much and produces too little.

I just finished the selection process for feral jury duty. Not picked again, getting pretty predictable, I'm ZERO for 6 times called. If I get as far as name and profession I get let go. Anyway, just a few observations about the court. Beautiful old building, lots of spacious empty places in it, well kept but like a dime in a goat's butt. The area surrounding the building is a post industrial slum on at least three sides. There were about 15 federal employees in the court room by my count. There were five attorneys for the gooberment plus fbi agents on the case plus no less than 3-4 marshals at a time in the court room and they were relieved about every 30 to 45 minutes in rotation lest they get too tired or something. Of the 32 people in the semi-finals who gave their name, occupation and other details when asked about 3/4 of them had some kind of public payroll job. Only about 6 or so actually worked in the private sector and those were mostly farmer / ranchers or self-employed tradesmen and one insurance agent. All the rest were teachers, counselors, social workers, state, local and federal employees of some kind or worked for one of the Indian Tribes in our area. I would not have given so much personal information with the criminal defendant and so many people I did not know in the court room. Prospective jurors were addressed by their first and last name in the court room, surprised me with all the usual effort to protect personal information. In local courts, the only others I have been called for, we were addressed by juror number. Though I see most criminals in court as guilty I doubt anyone can get a fair trial if the gooberment wants to burn you for any reason. The gooberment has unlimited resources, there is no such thing as equal representation under the law against such an overwhelming force.

I'll wager that the daily cost of the court I was called for exceeds the monthly income of most of the people in the jury pool. Just the daily rate for the jury pool reaches $3,000 plus mileage and per diem for those over 75 miles away. That per diem rate is something like $165 a day. Again, I'll wager just the jury pool runs in to at least $6,000 a day in total during the selection process. 600 people are in the pool for this 3 month period at a probable base cost of something like $75,000 just for each of their first day's attendance. The trial was expected to go on for four days. After that will be endless appeals and incarceration. This whole scene is repeated in federal district court houses all across the nation. Crime is a cost multiplier. Just the cost of the "justice" system in this country is enough to choke a horse. You know it goes on all the time but to see it and experience it in action drives the shocking truth in to you.

Just about every day in hundreds of court rooms across the country these costs go on and they hardly make round-off in the federal budget. Costs of each court are not even noticed but would break most of us mere mortals.