(no subject)
Tomorrow at 7pm, the state of Georgia will kill a man. A man who received a trial by a jury of his peers, many of which have now expressed doubts about his guilt. A man who had nine people testify against him, seven of whom have now recanted their own testimony. I don't know whether or not I support the death penalty, and I don't know whether or not Troy Davis is guilty of a murder. But up to this point, I believed in the American justice system, despite its flaws. The law says that you must be convinced beyond a reasonable doubt to convict him of such a crime. The law also allows many steps to have a sentence overturned or commuted. At each step, the law failed Mr. Davis.
But most of all, I'm sad for the family of the victim in this case. Not only because their loved one is dead, and that is the one immutable fact in the world. I'm sad because for so long they've had to live with the hatred amongst their pain. Reading their quotes in all the stories makes me wonder, do they really think the lethal injection of one man, who may or may not have committed this crime, is going to make them feel better? To undo the loss, and hurt? Or lessen their resentment of him in any way? But who am I to tell them what they should, or could feel.
The thing is though, I understand the anger. Even though I haven't made up my mind on the death penalty, I know I want Eve's killers to die. I would do it myself if I could. I don't think it's right, and that's why I don't get to decide their fate. I'm not sure it's even okay to feel this way, that somehow the deeply seeded feelings inside of me have taken root and grows when I let them feed on more anger. I want to be okay with it. To find some peace. But I'm not sure that's even possible.
But I want to set the subtext aside in this instance. I've followed this case for a couple years. It's not often that Bob Barr, Jimmy Carter, and the Pope all agree on anything. I'm sad that 5 appeals board members had the sole power and ability to right a wrong and they chose not to. I'm sad that the government of Georgia can exact the ultimate vengeance upon one of its citizens. And I'm sad that Troy Davis has lived a significant portion of his life as a pawn of the legal system, that he is now resigned to a fate as a statistic in a history book.
Anyway, I'll leave off with this:
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
But most of all, I'm sad for the family of the victim in this case. Not only because their loved one is dead, and that is the one immutable fact in the world. I'm sad because for so long they've had to live with the hatred amongst their pain. Reading their quotes in all the stories makes me wonder, do they really think the lethal injection of one man, who may or may not have committed this crime, is going to make them feel better? To undo the loss, and hurt? Or lessen their resentment of him in any way? But who am I to tell them what they should, or could feel.
The thing is though, I understand the anger. Even though I haven't made up my mind on the death penalty, I know I want Eve's killers to die. I would do it myself if I could. I don't think it's right, and that's why I don't get to decide their fate. I'm not sure it's even okay to feel this way, that somehow the deeply seeded feelings inside of me have taken root and grows when I let them feed on more anger. I want to be okay with it. To find some peace. But I'm not sure that's even possible.
But I want to set the subtext aside in this instance. I've followed this case for a couple years. It's not often that Bob Barr, Jimmy Carter, and the Pope all agree on anything. I'm sad that 5 appeals board members had the sole power and ability to right a wrong and they chose not to. I'm sad that the government of Georgia can exact the ultimate vengeance upon one of its citizens. And I'm sad that Troy Davis has lived a significant portion of his life as a pawn of the legal system, that he is now resigned to a fate as a statistic in a history book.
Anyway, I'll leave off with this:
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.