The mercy seat
December 11, 2005I have two seemingly contradicting statements I’d like to make.
These two might seem like a contradiction, but let me explain. The death penalty cannot be executed by another human being. One human being cannot decide over another human being’s life because all men are equal (even though the current state of affairs of the world suggests otherwise). George Bush is no less of a human than me, neither is Saddam Hussein, neither is Richard Stallman, neither is Chantal Janzen, neither is [put name here]. And certainly, no judge, no jury (ugh! Juries are so Medieval), no governer, no executioner, no president, no Queen, no priest, no pope, is any more of a human than I am, so how on earth can any of them declare me unfit to live? Only something of a higher authority than us (let’s call it the cosmic goat) can decide over life and death. And since there is no such higher authority, the death penalty cannot be performed on any human being.
However, that does not mean I do not think some people do not have the right to live. People like child molesters, Hussein, Milosevic, you name it: as far as I’m concerned, they have no right to live.
However, there is no higher authority, so no way of murdering them. Because that’s what the death penalty is– state-sponsored murder.
—
PS, for anyone who thinks the death penalty is okay, read this:
It all began when they took me from my home
And put me on Death Row,
A crime for which I am totally innocent, you know.I began to warm and chill
To objects and their fields,
A ragged cup, a twisted mop
The face of Jesus in my soup
Those sinister dinner deals
The meal trolley’s wicked wheels
A hooked bone rising from my food
And all things either good or ungood.And the mercy seat is waiting
And I think my head is burning
And in a way I’m yearning
To be done with all this weighing of the truth.
An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth
And anyway I told the truth
And I’m not afraid to die.I hear stories from the chamber
Christ was born into a manger
And like some ragged stranger
He died upon the cross
Might I say it seems so fitting in its way
He was a carpenter by trade
Or at least that’s what I’m toldMy kill hand’s tatooed E.V.I.L.
Across it’s brother’s fist
That filthy five!
They did nothing to challenge or resist.In Heaven His throne is made of gold
The ark of his Testament is stowed
A throne from which I’m told
All history does unfold.
It’s made of wood and wire
And my body is on fire
And God is never far away.Into the mercy seat I climb
My head is shaved, my head is wired
And like a moth that tries
To enter the bright eye
I go shuffling out of life
Just to hide in death awhile
And anyway I never lied.And the mercy seat is waiting
And I think my head is burning
And in a way I’m yearning
To be done with all this weighing of the truth.
An eye for an eye
And a tooth for a tooth
And anyway I told the truth
And I’m not afraid to die.And the mercy seat is burning
And I think my head is glowing
And in a way I’m hoping
To be done with all this twisting of the truth.
An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth
And anyway there was no proof
And I’m not afraid to die.And the mercy seat is glowing
And I think my head is smoking
And in a way I’m hoping
To be done with all these looks of disbelief.
A life for a life and a truth for a truth
And I’ve got nothing left to lose
And I’m not afraid to die.And the mercy seat is smoking
And I think my head is melting
And in a way that’s helping
To be done with all this twisting of the truth.
An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth
And anyway I told the truth
But I’m afraid I told a lie.
Feel free to post your opinions on the death penalty.
World | 
“* I am against the death penalty in any shape or form; ”
A single person being put to death for a crime they didn’t commit is of course, one mistake too many, and I recall more than one case where it was discovered years later, where this had been the case.
“* I think some people have no right to live. ”
While I certainly wouldn’t advocate killing anybody, I’d be just as happy if say Mr. Bush were to suddenly drop dead of a stroke :-/
Some people do more damage than good, and he IMO, is one of them. People directly involved with Monsanto would be others, but I digress.
Comment by Trent Townsend — December 11, 2005 @ 6:41 pm
Kippevel! (goose bumps)!! I think countries that still perform dead penalties got lost in time somewhere..
Who are you to decide if one should die? If you execute a person who has committed murder you’re no better than the criminal. That’s my opinion. Everyone has the right on a fair trial, doesn’t matter if you’re a terrorist or a thief, and i think you can punish criminals on more ways than just execute them. Not that i’m a big fan of the dutch justice department. Can someone tell Donner that there’s a ‘tbs’er’ on the lose again? But executing is not an option, in my point of view.
And yes, i agree, there are some people in this world that are just sooo wrong that i wouldn’t mind either if they happen to choke on their food or something. Think Bin Laden, Geert Wilders, Rita Verdonk, George Bush, and other people who can only see hate and disrespect. But it’s their right to have a different opinion than me, although i still think i’m right and their wrong :P
Nadia
Comment by nadia — December 11, 2005 @ 8:11 pm
oh yeah, now i’m the one making mistakes in my spelling lol
their –> they’re
(being ashamed of myself right now)
Comment by nadia — December 11, 2005 @ 8:14 pm
Heh don’t worry about spelling, English ain’t your native tongue, so who cares :). My msg last night on your blog was in Dutch, and still it took me a pretty long time to fix all the errors (I’m quite surprised I even bothered ;) ).
But anyway, I agree with just about every word you said. Death penalty, just like violence in general, is for the weak (typically American, in other words). Murder… As punishment for a murderer… Err. Don’t we condemn totaliterian regimes in the Islamic world for ie. chopping the hand off of thiefs? Yet we allow our “biggest” “ally” to murder whoever the fcuk they want?
Comment by Administrator — December 11, 2005 @ 10:10 pm
yeah well, don’t get me started on the US, our biggest ‘ally’ happens to act totally naïve when it comes to international law. Almost every western country acknowledges the International Court in The Hague, but not the US, because they don’t want to be reminded of all the things their soldiers are doing in war zones. If they acknowledge the International Court they shouldn’t be allowed to keep on arresting terrorist suspects and keep them locked in Guantanamo Bay. That makes me sick. Do you call that an example for democratic countries?!
Oh, and think about the Kyoto-deal. The US still haven’t signed the contract and yet they’re the biggest polluters (is this english??) of us all. I just think that the US government is being hypocrite.
I can go on like this for hours…
Comment by nadia — December 12, 2005 @ 4:52 pm
I quite often use this blog to vent my problems with the US too… As long as you seperate the US people from the US government, it’s all fine.
Comment by Administrator — December 12, 2005 @ 4:56 pm
“I quite often use this blog to vent my problems with the US too… As long as you seperate the US people from the US government, it’s all fine.”
That’s easy enough to do. The US governement isn’t comprised of people, but monsters :-P
Comment by Trent Townsend — December 12, 2005 @ 7:08 pm
lol
That’s true! I know there are some sensible people in the US, but the government is defenitily not represented by them..
Comment by nadia — December 13, 2005 @ 12:26 pm