A man whose job it was to keep the peace
Beat up a drunk, who fought for his release
And cried: ‘It’s you who’s tippled too much wine;
Your rowdiness is ten times worse than mine-
Who’s causing this disturbance, you or me?
But yours is drunkeness that men can’t see;
Leave me alone! Let justice do its worst-
Enforce the law and beat yourself up first!’

Farid ud-Din Attar, The Conference of the Birds (Mantiq al-Tayr)