Sunday, February 14, 2016

Rumpole was never like this

We've been watching and enjoying The Good Wife for a while now. One of those smart and attractive series that Americans seem to do so well. Nothing too horrendous or morbid with occasional snatches of humour (unlike The Bridge, which is probably my most favourite television series of recent years) it's an easy watch.

But I am becoming increasingly depressed by it, or rather by the actions of would-be politicians and the realisation that that is probably what it really is like. I say politicians; the heroine is standing for States Attorney - which I don't think is a political post but she has to be voted in - and so there is all the behind-the-scenes spinning. Totally innocent events become scandals and jokes must not be made because they'll be taken seriously by somebody.

And that's just the politics. Before that I was depressed by the 'get our client off whether he's guilty or not' mindset. It doesn't matter if it's by a loophole, just find something that will let us get him off/make us money. Anything goes if it pays enough. 

Is it just American law? Rumpole was never like that. Or am I naive?

2 comments:

Anne in Oxfordshire said...

I cannot watch or read anything depressing ..I like something easy and cheerful. 😊

nick said...

I'm sure there are plenty of British lawyers who'll do their best to get their client acquitted even if they know very well they're guilty as hell. But then isn't it the lawyer's job to provide a convincing defence for someone, whether they're guilty or not?

As for politics, I'm sure dirty tricks are going on all the time behind the sanitised public facades. We don't know the half of it.