Culture

Love, love, LOVED it this morning! Rain pouring down (okay, I don't usually love rain pouring down, but sometimes), the day darkened (unusual for Houston, yet these kinds of days somehow always carry with them a particular beauty and nostalgia), the coolness deriving from the rain. And to top it all off, there was traditional Chinese music (just instrumentals...a string and maybe a wind instrument) as I walked from the condo to my car. At first I thought I was just hearing things in the rain and wind, but as I kept walking, the music got clearer. It was so beautiful—and I guess it's hard to describe the feelings it invoked, because it wasn't just the music, it was everything as a conglomerate. Part of it has to do with how this isn't typical U.S. culture—you don't wake up in the mornings and hear someone playing music outside (too many people would complain and possibly sue for nuisance). It is, however, very typical of Chinese culture to play traditional Chinese music in public and be doing something like practicing tai chi along with it. And lo and behold, there was a man in the parking lot (where the music was coming from) who was practicing tai chi!! I TOTALLY felt like I was in China this morning....and it made me happy. Not because I'd rather be there than here, but it's just something about sensing and perceiving elements of the culture you came from that is fulfilling. I feel like this is the point where I branch off into a philosophical/theological discussion about how everyone desires belonging to something and identity and etc., but...it would take too long to articulate clearly.

On an unrelated note, the more I learn about the legal profession and system in our country plus the statistics that come with it, the more I realize that the legal system, and not just the medical system, needs an overhaul. The number/percent of people who go unrepresented each year because they can't afford justice is unacceptable. And here we are, with an oversaturated profession and market of lawyers (that is, we have more lawyers than we have jobs that will pay them), and we can't figure this out. I mean, I understand--we go to law school, we come out with huge debt. You want a job that will pay off those debts, and public interest work (NGOs, government, etc.) gives you a starting salary of around $40k - $60k, and $60k only if you're lucky. As a single person, yeah it might take some time to pay off those loans, but it's definitely doable, and if you work for a certain number of years in public interest, you can get loan/debt forgiveness (aka you are no longer in debt! But I think the general rule is 10 years, which is....really not attractive). Now, consider the fact that a first-year associate (someone who came straight out of law school) at a big firm makes a starting salary of $160,000 (and sometimes even more—and that's starting salary). Yes, let that sink in for a moment. Is that ridiculous? That is ridiculous to me. Ridiculous as in...THAT'S A LOT OF MONEY. And that's big firms. So how about mid-sized to small firms? I am not so sure on the answer to that, but if I were to take an educated guess, I'd say $100,000 a year isn't too far off the mark. Furthermore, it's generally easier to get a job at mid-sized/smaller firms than at a big firm, so it's not unreasonable that many law students would expect to land such a job. It's easy to see how there's a huge pressure to get a job that will let you pay off your debts quickly.

Okay, I'm running out of time because I have class in 15 minutes, but think about it. There's such a mismatch between people who need help and people available to help. Or rather, it's not a mismatch per se, it's that our legal system isn't viable enough to fix the problem. Ultimately it'd be a governmental thing, because that's where all the funds come from etc., and then you get conservatives and liberals arguing one way or the other, etc. Anyway, I have more thoughts on this, but no time currently, so maybe another day.