Apparently Nobody Goes to Jail

What do you have to do to go to jail these days? I am always hearing about people getting arrested but it looks like no one ever goes to jail. Maybe I am just seeing one side of the story but it seems like every celebrity or athlete gets caught and arrested but they never go to jail.

Most of us have heard about Pacman Jones and his numerous run-ins with the law. The one that resonated with me was when he threw $81,000 in the air at a strip club in Las Vegas during NBA All-Star weekend. When the dust settled, there were numerous people wounded with gunshots.

I know that there probably is not any law out there that prohibits people from throwing money in the air but I seem to remember my parents telling me you can't yell fire in a crowded theater. This was just the latest in a string of incidents he had been a part of. Yet, if you listen to his publicist and the people he plays with, he is not the kind of person to start trouble.

Another athlete to look at is Ricky Williams. He has failed drug tests four times with the NFL and yet he still gets to roam free and play football in Canada. He has even admitted that he uses marijuana and almost seems proud of the fact. I have friends that have been caught using drugs and I must say that a good deal of them have ended up in jail.

When any common person in America fails a drug test at work they get fired and there is no chance of them working that particular job again. When a professional athlete fails a drug test, he gets suspended for a while and then he is right back to work. I think that says a lot about where our morals and principles are way out of whack.

Why do laws not seem to apply to those that are in the spotlight? Should the penalties for the same crimes be the same for all people? I think the next person I hear say they failed a drug test should just claim they are going to rehab and they will be back to work in a few months. If athletes can do it, why cant we?

I love that Paris Hilton is going to jail for the next 45 days. Her defense that she was unaware that she could not drive with a revoked license was absolutely laughable. I think tomorrow I am going to just drive on the left side of the road and then tell the cop I did not know I couldn't do that.

While we try to teach our kids the difference between right and wrong, the gray area continues to grow. I just wonder what I will tell my kids when they find out that some people can get away with anything.