Sunshine and Light

Deep thoughts on a lazy Saturday

I rushed to the store and knocked out more gifts for Christmas this AM (almost there!!). Then I went to the shelter for dog-walking orientation (only to realize that it's tomorrow, can't wait, there are some damn cute dogs there!). But the rest of the afternoon has been mine to read "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer, surf the web, and take the dog for a W-A-L-K (Sorry, but if I say it, he'll get all excited and run between me and the door). In other words it's a lost kind of day ... Ahhhhhhh.

Anyhow, in my surfing, I came across this article by Jonah Goldberg. It resonates with me because I'm one of those people who is pro-death penalty, but not solidly so. On one side of the ledger, we have closure for the victim's families, punishment for the perpetrator, an example for the community. On the other side of the ledger, it's not an effective deterrent, we are taking someone's life, and it's more expensive to put someone to death than to allow them to live eternity in jail. Which then prompts more musings along the lines of is it more inhumane to cage a human for 40 years than to put them to death? (Discuss amongst yourselves). But for the most part, I think the goods on the pro-death penalty side of the ledger do outweigh the bads on the anti-death penalty side. Which brings us to the article. Goldberg talks about the anti-death penalty side's rhetoric:

As one protester on CNN declared: “Now we are here today because we understand this racist system wants to kill Stan Tookie Williams because of the example he sets to young people across this country.”

Ah, yes, it was Tookie’s anti-gang “message” that put him in the death chamber, not his multiple murders. After all, the white power structure cannot abide gangsters putting out nonviolent children’s books.

Many Americans hear this sort of thing and ask, “Who believes this garbage?”

And the reality is that there's more than a grain of truth in that. The reasons I would consider changing my opinion of the death penalty aren't because I think everyone on death row is really a nice guy deep down. So if these folks want me to change my stance, there needs to be a more logical, less visceral argument.

I'm waiting to be converted!

posted by MyHusbandRules @ 5:09 PM