Self Help was born out of the notion that when people lose faith in our courts and other institutions, they will resort to “self-help,” which looks like chaos, vigilantism, and rioting in the streets. What does that mean for real people? How do we get stuff done when the courts and other institutions not only refuse to help in a timely manner, but actively get in the way? The answer is that we must help ourselves.

This book is about three people who have urgent, desperate problems, which cannot wait for a broken system. They must help themselves, but how? The system may be broken, but it works frustratingly well when it comes to punishing those who help themselves.

About the Author

Richard Cravens lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with his wife, son, two daughters, four cats, and two dogs. After a relatively successful career in the hospitality industry, and after a bout of temporary insanity, he was sworn into the New Mexico State Bar at the age of 46. Despite his best attempts by hang-gliding, rock climbing, kickboxing, bar fighting, and drunken jeep crashes, he did not die of stupidity, got sober, and now he has an incredible life, for which he is very grateful.

Richard has been a member of the Biomedical Ethics Committee at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center since his first year of law school. He belongs to the New Mexico Lawyer's Assistance Committee, which helps lawyers with substance abuse and other issues to keep their licenses.