Death
May 3, 2006 at 11:20 pm | 1 Comment »I don’t believe in the death penalty. There are so many reasons. Not the least because there are so few times when the guilt of the accused is beyond doubt. And it’s more than a bit ironic that most of the strongest advocates of state-sponsored killing seem to be religious. Think about it for a moment. If Christian dogma is correct, killing a criminal is less punishment and more of a release.
But I have to admit that the Moussaoui case leaves me more than a bit conflicted. Here’s a man that by his own testimony clearly committed heinous crimes. The idea that my tax money will feed and clothe him sickens me. But still, I can’t shake my belief that a sentence of death is wrong. Always. Too bad he can’t have the option of suicide.
Two things.
One, it would take more of your tax dollars to put him to death given the appeals process that would be required.
Two — and MORE importantly, he wants to be put to death so he can be a martyr for Islam in his mind. I think it is REALLY important that he not get what he wants. That I am happy to pay for.
And analysts say that he is making himself out to be a much bigger fish than he really is in the whole plot. He was a fringe player at most. NOT that it makes him any less of someone deserving of life in prison to never see the light of day or ever be heard from again.