Ah yes, the importance of the 5th amendment.

We have a lot of rights in this country that we take for granted. Sometimes we even forget. We're trained not to question things and trust that the system works and is fair and is just. I'd suspect that the majority of the time, it is. But if you ever find yourself being questioned for a serious crime that you didn't commit, are you willing to gamble on the system being fair the majority of the time? Remember, the police are under tremendous public pressure to 'solve' and close the case. Our founders didn't think you should have to take that chance.

Here's a law professor on the subject, interesting enough video where I figured I'd write a whole post about it ;)