A question without an easy answer
It is poetic justice, so to speak, that the cases that have gotten Dickie Scruggs, Joey Langston, Tim Balducci, Steve Patterson and others in trouble lately were squabbles among lawyers about money. How will the millions be split? Who gets what?
This, of course, fits perfectly into the stereotype of greedy trial lawyers motivated not by justice for their clients but money for themselves. And that they would be willing – allegedly and admittedly – to corruptly influence judges to further enrich themselves just makes them seem that much more the products of central casting. It is life imitating art, but it is also a very real human tragedy.
These people have families and friends and employees whose livelihoods depend on them. They are all bright, gifted people who have done their share of good things over the years, whether through philanthropic generosity to the institutions they love or for community causes in general.
There are people who have always wished them ill, but there are also many who’ve admired and appreciated them.
What makes this story so gripping is that these aren’t one-dimensional characters. But their troubles do speak to an ancient human truth – the potentially corrupting influence of money, power or both.
NE MS Daily Journal Editorial
1/20/8
