Over at Defending People, Mark Bennett rehashes an old argument about the nature of the ethical responsibility of the criminal defense lawyer. The underlying argument is inconsequential. Not only has it been discussed before, but the counterpoint is so completely meritless as to render it unworthy of mention.

When he posted, I asked him why he was raising this nonsense again. He replied that there are new lawyers in the blawgosphere, and they should be made aware of the problem. He has a point. Even though these issues have been thoroughly discussed, new readers won’t know about it or participate in it. From the blawgers’ perspective, this is old news, been there, done that-type stuff. From the new readers’ perspective, it’s hot off the presses.

In gently chiding the counterpoint, Bennett offers this comment.

Ah, you crazy kids, with your contempt for the wisdom of those who have come before you!

This is a lesson worth repeating. There’s an awful lot of accumulated wisdom to be found in the blawgosphere. Lessons learned, often the hard way, by lawyers who came before.

The gut reaction is that new lawyers have new ideas, and why should they be constrained to adhere to old school notions. Thinking outside the box is a mantra for many, and it’s a worthwhile concept that can produce great ideas and approaches. Some will view Bennett’s comment as the typical old lawyer reaction to anything new.

This misapprehends the point. No one, neither Mark nor I, is trying to tell new lawyers not to think new thoughts, raise novel questions or consider interesting ideas. Not at all. Thinking outside the box is how we arrive at better, more effective ways to do what we do. It’s something to be encouraged and attempted, whether by new lawyers or old.

The point, however, is that not every new idea is a good idea. Indeed, not every new idea is new. There’s a natural tendency to become unduly enamored with one’s ideas, a sort of pride of ownership. Everybody wants to invent something newer and better, whether it’s a mousetrap, a defense or just an idea accepted by others. But there’s really very little new, and coming up with something truly new, and actually good, is both difficult and extremely rare. Most of us will never do so.

While there’s nothing wrong with raising a novel idea, there is something very wrong with those who can’t let go of their own brainstorm after it’s been thoroughly and completely debunked. Part of growing up is accepting that the idea is wrong and letting go.

Mark’s comment is directed toward the inability to recognize that the time has come to give up some unacceptable notion that’s been floated and rejected, with extreme prejudice. That’s the ‘”contempt” to which he refers, that reaction to “old timers” like Mark, like me, that our refusal to acknowledge the brilliance of an idea is symptomatic of our clinging to the past, our old school ignorance, our inability to appreciate the visionary.

There seems to be a growing contempt for experience in the blawgosphere. Plenty of people with either peculiar political views that color their idea of what it means to be a criminal defense lawyer, or the self-serving notion that things are different now and they won’t be constrained by the past. Screw George Santayana. Screw Dunning-Kruger. Screw experience.

Yes, it’s worse to be an old fool than a young fool, but it’s better not to be a fool at all.

A number of people have asked me why I haven’t jumped into the underlying argument that Bennett’s post addresses. The answer is plain, that I’ve already addressed it a few times and said what I have to say. Despite demands that I continue to engage in arguments with every kid who decides to persist, there’s no bone in my head that compels me to continue to argue just because some young buck decides to challenge me.

Here’s the harsh news from this mean old man: You’re wrong. There’s no issue. Your inability to accept the accumulated wisdom of those who came before you doesn’t make you right, just stuck. In some instances, it even renders you a danger, someone who has no business holding the lives of others in your hands. Sorry if that makes you sad, but the world didn’t come into existence the day you decided to show up.  No doubt there will be comfort to be found amongst other lawyers to soothe your fevered brow, but not here.