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Modern law lacks ethical roots

If a robber kills a pregnant woman, the court will recognize that a double murder has taken place. In other words, American law recognizes the fetus as a human being in such cases.

But if the same woman survives the accident and aborts the child a month later, the aborted fetus is regarded as nonhuman — no life has been lost under American law.

If the Ten Commandments are hung in a public building one way, the display is legal; but if they are hung in another way, it is illegal.

If an American robs a bank and later lives a good life before being arrested, his after-the-fact purity will not deter a court from identifying his crime, or from applying the appropriate punishment. But if an illegal alien (or "undocumented immigrant" to the politically correct) lives a good life before applying for admission to a Massachusetts college, some elected officials would ignore his illegal status and instead attempt to get him admitted at a discounted cost to a local college.

The point is this: If you are looking for consistency, you won't find it in American law. And it's getting worse all the time for one simple reason: America has detached itself from the ethical roots that are imbedded in the founding documents.

As a result, modern lawmakers and judges are increasingly applying situational ethics to changing circumstances — principles of the moment that satisfy their personal concepts of justice.

The Massachusetts House recently voted 96-57 against a bill that would have extended a significant tuition benefit to "undocumented immigrants".

The translation of that brief sentence in terms that most citizens are familiar with is this: Massachusetts lawmakers (supported by Commissar Kennedy) recently identified a group of illegal aliens who wished to attend Massachusetts colleges at rates that are more favorable than those paid by out-of-state citizens. Given the fact that elected officials have sworn to protect the law, one would expect that these illegals would have been arrested, and that a subsequent authority would have deported them to a college of their choice in their native land.

But no. This is the land (and the state) that has recently lost its legal brains.

Instead of enforcing the law, our leaders ignored the illegal presence of these applicants and concentrated totally on how many eggs from the state's basket of goodies could be distributed to them.

Legal immigration — adapted to the nation's needs and to the real dangers faced by some migrants — is good for America. Illegal immigration is not, and the fruits of it should never be rewarded.

Time is running out for America to redefine itself, and to place warm and protective arms around its culture. It did not become great by accident.

This is no time for misplaced compassion or for fuzzy thinking. Great men are needed.

Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison, where are you?

Robert Kelly of Peabody writes a weekly column for The Salem News. His e-mail address is robert.kelly5@verizon.net