Death Penalty Blues
Amnesty announced that worldwide death penalty totals this past year were second highest EVER per annum, a huge number topping out at more than 3,700 executions.
The breakdown of executions is astonishing- the spike in the numbers is due to one country in the world, which I think should come as no real surprise:
China, this past year, has killed 3,400 people. More than 10 times the rest of the executions globally, combined. This is huge. remember that China's justice system imprisons Tibetan nuns for the duration of their life for singing "Tibet Freedom" songs from within their monastery walls. Not to say that ALL of Chinese society is as morally corrupt as this, but these numbers are staggering, to say the least. There is much to think about and act upon with China- they typically begin to bow to international pressure when they want some legitimizing event that solidifies a perception of being a major and vital world player- in fact shortly before Condi's most recent visit to Beijing, they released 3 life-time Tibetan monks.
Beijing wants those Olympics so bad, they're willing to do just about anything to make them work in golden hues. The question always is, then, why don't WE want justice and human rights SO BAD that we show them how important they are...??
Another, related note is this page from the BBC:
The BBC has some of the best commenting systems available. people are very free to express their perceptions without much fear of negative recourse from other posters- not much flaming occurs on the BBC. But if you read them, many of these entries are from British and American readers, and most of them are either very-pro-death penalty or generally pro-death penalty.
I disagree with the Death Penalty as a vital moral issue- because I have no interest in the State, in my name, enacting life-ending justice. IN ANY CASE. I don't want the state to interfere with end of life, like they attempted to with Terry Schiavo, I don't want the state questioning a woman's right, I don't want the state to feel it has control over my lifeblood or anybody's. They have no right and no business. And I am disgusted that I have to pay for it. (No tax return this year, boys. even though I'm dripping below the federally mandated poverty level on this claim I STILL had to shell out another $70 bucks. Thank god for those tax cuts, eh?)
But we thirst for this kind of justice, thinking that it is morally acceptable. Those people all want the death penalty, and many of their reasons are understandable. but are any of them JUSTIFIABLE?
The breakdown of executions is astonishing- the spike in the numbers is due to one country in the world, which I think should come as no real surprise:
China, this past year, has killed 3,400 people. More than 10 times the rest of the executions globally, combined. This is huge. remember that China's justice system imprisons Tibetan nuns for the duration of their life for singing "Tibet Freedom" songs from within their monastery walls. Not to say that ALL of Chinese society is as morally corrupt as this, but these numbers are staggering, to say the least. There is much to think about and act upon with China- they typically begin to bow to international pressure when they want some legitimizing event that solidifies a perception of being a major and vital world player- in fact shortly before Condi's most recent visit to Beijing, they released 3 life-time Tibetan monks.
Beijing wants those Olympics so bad, they're willing to do just about anything to make them work in golden hues. The question always is, then, why don't WE want justice and human rights SO BAD that we show them how important they are...??
Another, related note is this page from the BBC:
The BBC has some of the best commenting systems available. people are very free to express their perceptions without much fear of negative recourse from other posters- not much flaming occurs on the BBC. But if you read them, many of these entries are from British and American readers, and most of them are either very-pro-death penalty or generally pro-death penalty.
I disagree with the Death Penalty as a vital moral issue- because I have no interest in the State, in my name, enacting life-ending justice. IN ANY CASE. I don't want the state to interfere with end of life, like they attempted to with Terry Schiavo, I don't want the state questioning a woman's right, I don't want the state to feel it has control over my lifeblood or anybody's. They have no right and no business. And I am disgusted that I have to pay for it. (No tax return this year, boys. even though I'm dripping below the federally mandated poverty level on this claim I STILL had to shell out another $70 bucks. Thank god for those tax cuts, eh?)
But we thirst for this kind of justice, thinking that it is morally acceptable. Those people all want the death penalty, and many of their reasons are understandable. but are any of them JUSTIFIABLE?
posted by General Stan at 12:57 PM
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