To Kill Or Not To Kill

I see the death of little Caylee Anthony is back in the news and the trial of her mother for first degree murder has started. That also means that if convicted, Caylee’s mother, Casey, could, and probably will, face the death sentence. The trial is in Florida, where a death sentence means exactly that, a death sentence. Now is when the nation, and in fact, the whole world will start lining up in two camps. The capital punishment advocates vs. the no capital punishment group.

From my perspective it is the angel against the devil sitting on my shoulders whispering in my ears. The devil says convincingly,
“Execute the horrible monster who, after killing her daughter, stuffed the little darling into the trunk of the car to rot while Mom went dancing and partying.” “Hold on, devil,” the angel replies, “Only God has the right to take human life. Vengeance is mine and mine alone. Besides, how many innocent people have been executed by the hangman throughout history? Maybe, just maybe, Casey is telling the truth. Only God can decide her innocence or guilt on judgment day. Remember the commandment, Thou shalt not kill.” “Oh, I remember it,” replies the devil, "God is killing off thousands of children every year due to starvation and abuse. What kind of God do you worship anyway?”

The argument on my shoulders goes on and on until my head feels like it is going to explode. Finally, I intervene – “Be gone, both of you!” I knock the devil and angel off my shoulders, bag them both, put the bag in the trunk of my car, and then go down to the local pub for a cold one. I don’t mean to make light of the seriousness of the crime. The whole thing makes me sick inside. Sometimes humor, even sick humor, is the only way I can clear the cobwebs of indecision out of my brain.

There is one thing that makes the whole execution vs. life in prison without parole dilemma easier for me to deal with. Mankind has not figured it out for hundreds of years. For me to figure it out seems less important and in fact senseless. We are dealing with the law of the land, and the law in Florida land is clear. If you commit capital murder, you will be executed by lethal injection. Lethal injection, now there is a subject – oh, never mind, I will save it for a later blog. Lucky, lucky you….

Write on,

Mittster