Nick Griffin's Tweet and the British Quality of Justice (that should not be "strained")

http://twitter.com/nickgriffinmep

Tweeted Nick Griffin today:

"Second killer on run with a shotgun in a month suggests that the financial crisis is starting to cause real strain in society. Britain going mad. It's not the gentle place it used to be. Such a shame."

While I disagree with the Chairman that Derrick Bird and Raoul Moat's grievances are anything to do with the financial crisis, I do think there is a theme of "No Justice, No Peace" running through the stories of both men.  They are clearly very angry about the legal system, the behaviour of the police and the quality of justice they received from the government.  


Many non-serial killers are too.  Let us hope the government does not push too many of us beyond the limit with which we will not put. 

The quality of mercy is not strained (The Merchant of Venice, IV.1)
The beginning of Portia’s famous speech is often quoted, but it is so familiar that many people never consider what it actually means. It’s often vaguely assumed to mean “mercy can spread a long way”, or “it’s not difficult to be merciful”, but I would suggest that in fact the meaning of “strained” is closer to our modern sense “restrained”. In its context, the line would therefore mean “mercy is not subject to control by man’s laws.”

Read more at Suite101: Misunderstood Shakespeare: Famous But Frequently Misapplied Quotations from The Bard http://shakespeareantheatre.suite101.com/article.cfm/misunderstood_shakespeare#ixzz0symRAoGe

 Mercy is of course a crucial ingredient of Justice.