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For the record, in general I am against capital punishment. I think it is barbaric and diminishes man's sense of decency.
But what disgusts me even more is the sad fact that, throughout the miserable history of man, there have been so many bastards whose deeds are so reprehensible they force the rest of us to take such drastic measures. Because, in the end, no other form of punishment seems satisfactory.
We often hear that it is not for men to judge other men; that this is the prerogative of God. But in certain cases, we need to be sure. Perhaps we don't trust God's judgment in these cases. Perhaps we think that His mercy will extend to these bastards. Perhaps we think this kind of mercy is misplaced. So we take justice into our human hands and in effect we tell God we're sorry Lord, judge us harshly if you must, but these bastards need killing.
Saddam was a member of this special club. You know the litany of his crimes. Had we heard that he himself had shown the slightest mercy towards any of his adversaries, perhaps we might have felt differently. But he didn't, and so we don't. And because he was warned, not once but many times, to cease his dangerous actions - and because each and every time he gave us the finger - he pushed an American president one step too far. He believed America would not intervene because former presidents gave him every reason to believe. He caused an intervention which has the death toll of Americans about to reach 3,000.
For all these things and more, hanging is not punishment enough. But it will have to do. And perhaps it will cause a few other bastards around the world to reconsider their own actions. Because even though I am not in favor of the death penalty, in these special cases, I say kill all the evil bastards. The sooner the better.
Happy New Year, world.
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