It is commanded: Justice shalt thou pursue.

A worthy admonition, yet it is not enough to merely pursue; we must act and judge with justice. We must administer justice fairly, evenhandedly, and without bias.

For if we cannot extend equal justice to all, we cannot be assured of justice for ourselves.

Nor can the scales be reset for each one, pressing a thumb too heavily, or tilting the balance too favorably.

It is said Justice holds the scales, eyes blindfolded, lest she be accused of a blink, but O Lord, in our pursuit of justice for all, we must keep our eyes wide-open, and untarnished with self-interest or prejudice.

If justice we seek, justice we must ensure.

I initially read this invocation during the recent Supreme Court Hobby Lobby lopsided debacle, which is actually not as horrendous as the Court declaring corporations are people. When a corporation can audibly fart, I’ll believe it has the same rights as an unborn embryo, but certainly not as many as those of a Honduran or Salvadorian orphan who’s slipped across the US border, hoping to escape rampant violence and tyranny.

The point being, justice has become a travesty in America. Its definition twisted, depending on the political or religious slant-of-the-day. Forget the amusing analogy of Lady Justice pressing her thumb a bit too hard or blinking. What’s happening is frightening.

A fetus that can’t survive outside the womb shouldn’t have more rights than a pregnant woman who got that way because of incest or rape. And a teenager who’s seen his family and friends indiscriminately shot, shouldn’t be sent back to the same place after they’ve miraculously made the journey to America.

Corporations? Maybe they’re human. After all, they exhibit the human traits of greed, selfishness, and arrogance, distilling their efforts on making money for executives and stockholders rather than funneling earnings back onto their infrastructures: rewarding and motivating employees, strengthening their physical and virtual infrastructures, conducting research and development that supports and extends beyond their endeavors, and investing in their communities and environment.

While the definition of a corporation is a group of persons united or regarded as united in one body, they’re more akin to expecting the many to benefit the few. Case in point, Adecco has 31,500 full-time employees whose salaries is gleaned from the mark-up on the hourly rate of 650,000 associates in temporary positions. In 2013, 91% of Adecco’s revenues came from temporary workers.

In the United States, Adecco realizes excellent earnings by offering associates few benefits, including “preventive” rather than full healthcare coverage, no paid time off (sick time, vacation or holidays), and fluffy words like “Better work. Better life,” which does little to pay the bills.

For the first half of the 2014, Adecco revenues increased 2%, 5% in constant currency. Their gross profits were up 4% or 8% in constant currency, owing to a gross margin of 18.4%. To reduce costs in North America, they restructured, reducing full-time head count, branch optimization (i.e. fewer people, doing more work), and moving to a single headquarters.

While Adecco associates in America are forced to do without healthcare insurance, and take national holiday off without pay, Patrick De Maeseneireb, the CEO of the company, earns 6,072,310 Swiss Franc or around $8,134,000 per year.

No doubt, Adecco has a platoon of lobbyist, manipulating politicians’ and governing entities to ensure they can write-off as much as possible and skirt having to offer benefits, unless required by law.

At one time, America set the bar for civil liberties, quality-of-life, ingenuity, and opportunity. The bar is slowly inching down, compromising justice and equity for all.