Has civilization, ie Western culture lost the intent of law?

As we look around our own cultures, and I speak from a US perspective, has our culture lost the intent of law through the plethora of laws upon laws, that basically have become a joke, and no longer a guideline, but means to control? I have read where tax laws, criminal codes, etc. number into the tens of thousands of pages. Do we really need that? Would not a common sense, general law or guideline be more affective?