Once in a while, the same old arguments come up and the same
old positions apply. There’s a story on
the news this morning that the Supreme Court of the United States is engaging
in cruel and unusual punishment.
Richard Bucklew is on death row in Missouri, having committed crimes for which people sometimes get executed.
He suffers from a rare physical condition which forms blood filled
pustules which may burst during the execution and cause great pain.
That’s what his lawyers say.
Understand, I don’t blame them.
Their job is to keep Bucklew alive and if they can think of a valid or
even a stupid reason, they MUST present it to a Court.
The majority of the Supreme Court held that there is no
right to die a painless death.
Well – there is no right to die a painless death. That is a simple fact. Live with it. Many people justly fear death, Some people do realize that it’s a part of
life, but fear of the pain of death.
Talk to people who have seen death. The most pleasant people in life die a most
ugly death.
The story I saw today says that 3% of executions are “
botched,” meaning that the convict suffers for longer than an execution which
is NOT botched. I don’t know any
different numbers, so less assume that’s accurate. Of course, “botched” means different things –
Something happens to the body that the body is unaware of (catching on fire in
a electric chair may be one of those – But I’ve never been in an electric
chair). Other methods, such as hanging – particularly by one’s own hand - is frequently “botched,” because
the person doesn’t use a long enough cord or doesn’t place it correctly to
break the neck, and the person very surely will suffer. A firing squad will even occasionally miss the heart. That's why an officer is standing by to shoot the convict in the head.
I doubt if many citizens are OK with the death penalty but
want it done perfectly ever time.
Generally, you’re either in favor of the death penalty or against it. If you oppose it, c'mon, the method really doesn’t matter, but you'll use a “bloody
shirt” to wave against the death penalty.
Let me be clear: I am
against the death penalty. This is for a
simple reason: I don’t trust the
Courts. I don’t trust the jury
system. I don’t even trust the Supreme
Court. Hey, they decide the law and I have to follow the law, but I don’t have to
be ecstatic about it.
I can – and have – pictured a “perfect storm” of a really
competent prosecutor, an adequate-but-really-inept defender, some gruesome
facts, lots of negative publicity to pollute potential jurors, a judge who is
keen to pot someone to a death sentence, and appellate courts who vote based on
politics rather than humanity. I don’t
think it happens often. But if you’re
the defendant it happens to, you don’t care if you’re the only one.
(Let me also point out version of agreement with Emerson, who
said “A Fooling consistency is the hobgoblin of a little mind.” There are several people who I’ve met over
the years that I would not hesitate to
kill and would sleep soundly afterwards.
All people will need to go will be to trust my judgment. But as your friend, let me tell you that you
should never trust my judgment. So – as your friend – I say there is no thing like a “safe”
death sentence.)
If you find death sentences OK – which many do – just devise
a certain method that works 99% of the time (there’s no such thing as fool-proof)
and get on with it. You’ll have to deal with
a body afterwards, and it may be really messy.
That’s the breaks. That’s what
happens when people die. You always have to wash out the body bag. If you
personally aren’t willing to get your hands dirty, you not really and truly for
the death penalty.
There is a nearly 100% effective execution means. The Chinese use it all the time (being the
real king of the death penalty) but it has a German name: Genickschuss.
The executioner – yes it’s a single person, none of this
spread-the-blame crap – puts a pistol to the base of the convicts neck, points
in an upward trajectory and shoots. The
round may or may not exit the skull – it depends on the load, the type of bullet,
the caliber, and the convict’s skull – so prepare to be messy. But it works.
All I’m suggesting that we as a nation quit with the red
herrings. If you favor it, support
it. If not, Don’t support it. I’ll always oppose it, but I’ll be damned if
I wave the bloody shirt.
Incidentally, I’ve heard about unqualified lawyers trying to
get qualified in the public’s mind by being admitted to the Supreme Court. That is stupid and an embarrassment to the
Bar. I didn’t get added to Supreme Court
Bar until I had to file a petition here and thus, I HAD to apply. I’ve never appeared in the Courtroom and
never expect to. But it’s the easiest
bar in the United States. You have to send
them a $200 check and have SOMEBODY who is a Bar member sign your
petition. Then, they mail you a
certificate and you can advertise yourself as part of the Supreme Court
Bar. You can never had appeared in any
Court as a lawyer, never talked to a
jury, never negotiated a case, and never have practiced law . It’s like claiming you’re a Native American
based on less than 1% DNA.
PS - A family tradition says that there is Native American blood in the family. I had a DNA test. Nope. Not a drop.
Mizpah.
