The Non-profit defense

Saying for the day-Absolute justice is achieved by the suppression of all contradiction: therefore it destroys freedom. Albert Camus

When I was still in Crystal Falls the police ran some kind of sting operation and caught five people selling drugs. I am sure that in every small town you can find somebody selling drugs. But that wasn’t what caught my attention. One of the men argued in court that he shouldn’t be charged because he had failed to make any money at it. He was a poor seller of drugs. He had gone into the business to make money. He failed. So that should be penalty enough. I call this the bad capitalist defense.
Now if it worked and I didn’t follow the case it would have set a precedent where the bad capitalist defense could be used in other cases.
I could see the following court case.
A woman has been shot. The man who shot her is in court. He is asked for his plea.
Killer– Not guilty by reason of non profit your Honor.
Judge– You did shoot this woman.
Killer– Right in the head. A good clean shot. I do good work.
Judge. Then why aren’t you guilty?
Killer– Because her husband never paid me. He promised after the shooting to give me $50,000 but he reneged. No profit . No crime.
Judge– The husband hired you to kill his wife.
Killer– Right. But he didn’t pay up.
Judge– Didn’t you get some up front money ?
Killer– Yep. He gave me $10,000 . But I spent all of that on doing the job.
Judge– What expenses did you have ?
Killer– I had to buy a gun that couldn’t be traced. Had to rent a car in another town and drive here. Do you know what gas costs per gallon? I had to rent a motel room so I could watch his wife for awhile. It all adds up. My accountant has prepared a full expense sheet for you.
Judge – It does look like you didn’t make anything. But I have some good news for you. We took the husband to civil court and the husband was ordered to pay you $40,000. I have the check here for you.
Killer– Thank you judge.
Judge– Now , since you have no defense. I find you guilty of murder and sentence you to life in prison and a $30,000 fine.
Killer– Why $30,000?
Judge– That way you still make a profit.
Life can be exciting.

@@@@ News from Pigeon Falls-The little town in my basement where the trains still run, dragons fly, and it’s getting colder.– It snowed this morning in Pigeon Falls, a big , heavy, white snow. The ground was covered for fifteen miles around the town. This is an early snow even for a UP town.
Petrovich says it fits the prophecy. The deer are gone, the pigeons are gone. It is cold . And now everything is white. They would do well to study the driblets and look for a way out. There is always a way out.
Eino says they have had snow in September before. It happens. In a day or so it will melt and it won’t come again until Christmas.
Other people are not so sure and a lot of people are going to Petrovich’s website and reading driblets sixty two and seventy seven. They are looking for that way out.
Despite the bad coffee in Nancy’s absence and despite the fact that Nellie is not a good listener people are stopping into Nancy’s Coffee shop and sharing their ideas over a cup of coffee and a mediocre saffron bun. A number of them think that when Nancy gets back she should sing the Pigeon Falls song. Then the pigeons will come back and the snow will go. Others think that Vicky East should write a new song and sing it. Then the pigeons will return and everything will return to normal. The wildest idea is that the Governor should come and sing the Pigeon Falls song. She is a woman with power.
Will the snow continue. Is Eino right? Is Eino wrong? Should the Governor sing? Will the Governor sing? Will the poor dragon freeze? And of course is Tommy UK really the Undertaker’s kid?
Tomorrow not one of these questions will be answered but come and visit anyway.
*****

Today's Link-Creative Musings- A depressing bit of poetry.
Another good day. In the morning I started the impossible task of cleaning off the kitchen desk. Betty painted fence. Pennie cut grass. Then Peter and his children stopped in. They went to some event. I waited for a man to come and pick up the bed I sold on the internet. Peter returned and the man came. He also took the stuff I had on free cycle. So I sold some and gave some away. Then we went out to eat. When we came back we played two games of canasta with Betty and I winning both of them. Now I need a breathing treatment.
GBYA