Civic Duty

Will someone please tell me why being called for jury duty is cause for whining such as the world has never seen? I mean really. The boss AND his daughter both received notices this week and the joyful hooting from the 'older than 70 years' department can only be matched in volume by the 'I wish I had your excuse' department. This does not factor in the 'how do you get out of it?' department that sits behind me and the '$%#! how I do hate jury duty' department that sits across the aisle. On other days this same set of whiners squeal about how the country is full of selfish people, and no one has respect anymore blah blah blah. While this is true - the country IS full of selfish people and respect is seldom seen or demonstrated, the solution has to start with the individual. "Do as I say, not as I do" is the crappiest answer ever. Why should I listen to you if you won't do what you want me to do? Say it with me boys and girls, "hip...hip...hipocracy." That's half the country's beef with the President. How can he send soldiers to war when he got out of it? How can "they" suggest that others serve on juries when they won't go themselves? Regarding this jury duty thing; I am not among the uninitiated. I've been called to serve twice. And I've had to report to the courthouse both times. I blogged about the first time. The second was not quite as exciting but who says it has to be? It's our civic duty people. It's a responsibility that comes when we "...form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity..."
(Tell me where that comes from and you're smarter than 90% of the nation's population.)
I'm the first to admit the jury selection process is not a perfect system, but if it was perfect what would be the point? (If we were a perfect country we wouldn't have need of courts in the first place.) Democracy is not perfect by any stretch but it's trying to be better than alternatives.

• Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except all those others that have been tried from time to time. - Winston Churchill

If we don't serve than who would? Drug dealers? They have all the time in the world to go downtown. Housewives? Well sure, some of the them. County employees? Because the phrase "going postal" came from nowhere. (Think how long the line at the DMV would be if federal employees were the only ones who went to jury duty!) But we have the right to a jury of our peers. Ask anyone you know, work with, live next to: is a gang banger their peer? How about a college student? A housewife? An elementary school teacher? A business man? Wait, the business man and college student try and get out of jury duty. This is interesting. Also this and this. I especially like the part about women fighting for equal rights; to vote, to work, to serve on the jury. And now they think it's too hard or what?
It's pure selfishness in my opinion. "Why do *I* have to go?," "*I* don't have the time," "It's inconvenient for *ME*" Me, me, me, me, me. Grow up.
(If you couldn't tell I am REALLY frustrated with the Whining from the Whiney McWhinersons here in the office.)

This is me asking you Internet People - what is the big deal?