petermarcus | (no subject)

As I write this, Saddam Hussein is probably staring at the gallows that will take his life. My feelings about the death penalty in America have flip-flopped over the years. Currently, I'm anti- for a variety of reasons, from practical to libertarian, but I've had years where I have been pro- as well.

I'm not too upset about this one, despite the controversy over the methods of how this man is currently facing his doom. Directly or indirectly, the man is responsible for over a million deaths of Iraqis, Iranians, Israelis, Palestinians, Kurds, Kuwaitis, Saudis, Americans, British, Polish, Japanese, not to mention [fill in country or ethnic group here]. It's kinda hard for one person to end a million lives in these modern times. To end this one more life may not bring one back, or prevent more deaths, or sway future mass murders from their psychoses...but something tells me it can't really hurt either. Perhaps the world's net human empathy may rise a fraction of a percent. You never know.

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I am seeing many posts about Saddam's execution, but no comments. Perhaps it is because it's Friday night, but I don't know. Are people afraid to discuss the death penalty? Since when? You'd think with the war going on, this news would have people talking. *shrug*

It's always slow, between Christmas and NY. It's a true end to an era, though.

I go back and forth on this issue too.
In this case, I think death was an easy way out...Life imprisonment (at least, to me) would have been more difficult to face.
As for hanging...I was surprised by this too.

It's a traditional execution, but I'm surprised it wasn't a beheading or firing squad. It's kinda hard to believe the bugger is gone.

they didnt do the stoning thing either...

I just wish he would have had a forum to cough on the Reagan/Bush 1 years where they enabled and supplied him for nearly everything he did.

In the end, I am afraid I can't muster any emotion over this one either and although his being gone does not hurt it does not make anyone safer. Also, like Tito, Iraq will end up three countries like Yugoslavia when their Dictator died

I'm actually for the Balkanization of Iraq. At least each group can stay in their zones and rattle their sabers at each other, rather than the free movement within the country that enables all these bombs. Balkanization won't make a thousand years of friction go away, but neither will Federalism.