Forty years ago, then governor of Georgia, Jimmy Carter gave a speech in front of a room full of lawyers. This clip from the movie Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson presents Carter "speaking from the heart" about the "status quo".
In general, the powerful and the influential in our society shape the laws and have a great influence on the legislature or the Congress. This creates a reluctance to change because the powerful and the influential have carved out for themselves or have inherited a privileged position in society, of wealth or social prominence or higher education or opportunity for the future. Quite often, those circumstances are circumvented at a very early age because college students, particularly undergraduates, don't have any commitment to the preservation of the way things are. But later, as their interrelationship with the present circumstances grows, they also become committed to approaching change very, very slowly and very, very cautiously, and there's a commitment to the status quo.-Jimmy Carter, Governor of Georgia (Law Day Address, 1974)
By the way the movie by Alex Gibney about Thompson is recommended viewing for those interested in the 1960's San Francisco hippie scene or 1970's U.S. politics.
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