arnie has refused clemency to stanley 'tookie' williams. it's his decision i guess. but people weren't asking for him to be set free. just not to be put to death by lethal injection. he was convicted of killing four people and also was the leader and founder of the crips gang. so you could say he was not a very nice guy. once upon a time at least. since being incarcerated he has seemed to turn his life around, becoming an author and trying to turn people away from gang culture. he has received nobel prize nominations for his work. religious and political leaders as well as actors and musicians have spoken up for him. well, some actors, obviously one famously didn't.
but it's a very thorny issue and concerns redemption. surely anyone can turn their life into a force for good, despite having caused untold problems previously. but it seems weird to me that people who call themselves christians (i'm not sure of arnie's religious leanings but most politicians call themselves christians-they need those votes) should be putting people to death. we see bush and blair hanging out at church and they tell us they pray together. who or what they're praying to i'm not quite sure but i can imagine it has horns and a long beard. but here are these guys sending people to the gallows. what happened to forgiveness?
here's something from the n.y. times-
"In his five years as governor, Mr. Bush has presided over the executions of 111 men and 1 woman, far more than any other governor in any other state since the Supreme Court in 1976 allowed reinstatement of the death penalty. Texas leads the nation in putting inmates to death; in 1997 it executed 4 inmates in one week, 8 in one month and 37 for the year, all modern records."
i mean how bloodthirsty is he? and when it's not at home they're sending kids off to kill and be killed in whichever backwater they fancy the assets of this week. blair doesn't use the death penalty for criminals at home but he's quite happy to see thousands of iraqis and afghans get killed and for what reason? oh, yes, they're stopping terror. you stop terror by not encouraging it in the first place. not by killing even more people to clean up your mess... saddam, propped up and armed by the west. same with the taleban. the powers-that-be in the west knew what these people were up to, if they even cared. it's just when they want something you're not prepared to give up that they decide you're doing wrong. stay onside and you can do whatever you like. human rights only become a problem if you don't give us our oil supplies. they think they're pretty slick.
so... i don't know. i think they could leave 'tookie' in jail. he won't do any harm in there and in recent years he seems to have done a lot of good. i don't see bush, blair, or arnie winning any nobel prizes. and as mad as this world seems to be getting i can't see that changing. but i'd be prepared to forgive them if they came out and said 'i'm sorry. i lied. i'm a blooodthirsty, oil-thirsty, megalomaniac liar who walked all over your human rights and screwed you over left, right and centre for as long as possible but now i've seen the light. i'll stop lying to you. i'll do my best to create a world based on honesty and love and try to support you all to make the world a harmonious place in which to live, rather than a precarious prison of power games'.
if that happened, i'd even give them a second chance.
i know arnie only killed people in the movies. but just think how many people have died because of bush and blair's deceitful actions. a lot more than stanley 'tookie' williams ever killed.
http://partners.nytimes.com/library/politics/camp/010700wh-gop-bush.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lethal_injection
http://www.tookie.com/
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