Saddam....

As is probably predictable, I was upset to hear about the execution of Saddam Hussein. As is probably equally predictable, I am opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances, whether it is an international figure or Scott Peterson. It's wrong.

I get that Saddam was a terrible person. I get that Scott Peterson is a horrible person. That doesn't justify lust for revenge. The image of masked hangmen putting a rope around someone's neck and releasing the switch makes me physically ill. My heart sinks into my stomach and I feel the threat of vomit. This is visceral stuff. The fact that these people are "horrible" doesn't provide an excuse for us to collectively respond in kind. Where does it stop? When does the cycle of violence and revenge stop?

It is nearly 2007. It's nearly 2550 in Thailand. As much as I want to trust in the human spirit and our inherent ability to overcome barbarism, something like this happens and that faith slowly swirls down the drain.

Killing people to prove that killing people is wrong. State-sanctioned homicide is still homicide. Dancing in the streets and celebrating anyone's death ~ collective scheudenfruede ~ is perverted and twisted. It is so base that I can't even imagine it. It's a sick horror movie. I expect green pea soup projectiles and spinning heads. At the end, the credits will roll and we'll be reminded that it was only a movie, just a fantasy, intended to generate fear in bored, numb viewers.

We need to grow beyond this.


Peace,


~Chani