To the Editor:

Regarding the Another View by Mohammed Khaku in the Dec. 28, 2017, edition of the Parkland Press on mass incarceration, I believe the motivation for Mr. Khaku writing his opinion letter is he feels the criminal justice system disproportionately harms minorities.

His goal is to offer the false logic of social justice as a way to protect minorities from becoming modern day slaves, (using his words).

Justice is the deserved treatment of people, be it punishment or reward.

By definition, justice is social because it is of, for and by the people.

It’s like saying good luck. When luck is already good, the word good is not needed, or is added for emphasis.

I believe the word “social” was added to the word “justice,” not for emphasis, but to give “justice” a new definition.

Progressives define social justice as the demand for equal results of a group, instead of merit earned by individuals.

Social justice reform takes wealth, opportunities and privileges from one group of people within a society, and gives it to other groups, to obtain a more equal percentage of winners and losers among the population.

In the name of fairness, social justice activists preach this policy to level the competition on the playing field.

Who has the right to be treated in the way they think about themselves?

My answer is, “No one.”

If a person desires respect, that honor must be earned. Respect is not granted as a right.

Government taking upon itself the power to grant rights to people who feel deserving sets itself up to be a god to the undeserving.

In reality, the purpose of government is intended to protect the God-given rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness and not the feel-good fairness of progressive identity politics.

A government policy that damaged the fabric holding some minority groups together is the Great Society Program of 1964 by then President Lyndon Johnson.

In the past 54 years, 80 welfare programs have been implemented costing more than $24 trillion but the number of people living in poverty has more than doubled.

If $1 equals a mile, 24 trillion miles would be the same as traveling to the planet Mars more than 10,000 times.

After spending all that time and money, what have the Great Society Reforms accomplished?

Males not only left the workforce, they also left the family unit.

Welfare favored single mothers over married mothers by giving them larger payments, encouraging women not to marry the fathers of their children.

Children growing up without both parents in the home see single-parenting as being normal.

Dependence on GOD was replaced by a reliance on GOV.

The problem is not mass incarceration, the problem is dependence on government to solve moral deficiencies.

Self-reliant individuals cannot be legislated into existence.

Individual accomplishment beyond the ordinary gets lost on a level playing field.

Robert Krenicky

Orefield