Socrates and the Cop: Fragment of a Fanciful Dialogue

"You need not concern yourself with me," said Socrates to the cop. "Not only do I respect the gods, but I have a god inside me, named conscience. In my interiority while minding my own business I always consult this god. Since this is the source of my freedom, I am free even when, and especially when, a subject who must obey. I do what I am required to do of my own initiative."

"Well you are an unusual person and a true professional. Most people are scoundrels because they follow their desires rather than obeying the orders of a god. And then we have to intervene and put them back on track. The secret of punishment is to regard it as therapy. It is the medicine that enables us to pursue the happiness of people who have yet to find it for themselves. There is no salvation without damnation, and the secret to enduring hell is to call it purgatory."

"Yes, I have noticed that the temple is adjacent to the prison."

“Well [looking at his watch], let us know when you are ready to take it to the limit. I promise it won’t hurt. ‘It’s quick, it’s easy, and it’s the law’. ”