All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
- Edmund Burke
As soon as men decide that all means are permitted to fight an evil, then their good becomes indistinguishable from the evil that the set out to destroy.
- Christopher Dawson
The debate over the death penalty is hardly new, but it hasn’t been a point of emphasis in the GOP beauty pageant thus far. Nonetheless, for the current front-runner, Texas Gov. Rick Perry, it’s an issue that can, should, and in all fairness must be addressed. His use (and misuse) of the death penalty to advance his political prospects is as reprehensible as it is indicative of his character.
I can think of nothing that more completely (and disturbingly) lays bare exactly what’s so thoroughly out of whack in America today then the crowd’s reaction when Brian Williams asked Gov. Goodhair about executions in Texas. Williams asked, “Your state has executed 234 death row inmates, more than any other governor in modern times. Have you struggled to sleep at night with the idea that any one of those might have been innocent?” Some of the crowd’s loudest applause of the night came at the mention of the 234 executions, and again when Perry responded,
The state of Texas has a very thoughtful, a very clear process in place of which — when someone commits the most heinous of crimes against our citizens, they get a fair hearing, they go through an appellate process, they go up to the Supreme Court of the United States, if that’s required…. When you have committed heinous crimes against our citizens — and it’s a state-by-state issue, but in the state of Texas, our citizens have made that decision, and they made it clear, and they don’t want you to commit those crimes against our citizens. And if you do, you will face the ultimate justice.
Gov. Perry’s response was disturbing enough, but what really sickened me was the crowd’s enthusiastic and bloodthirsty reaction. This is what we’ve come to? Have we become a nation of Right-wing radicals who honor life when it comes to abortion but are willing to destroy it when they feel justified? Is life precious in one case but not so much in another? And what of the very real possibility that among those 234 executions there might just have been an innocent victim or two? If you don’t believe me, I have one name for you:
What is an acceptable margin of error? How many innocents can be executed to protect The Greater Good before it becomes a problem? Remember, as one Texan in a focus group sponsored by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison said, “It takes balls to execute an innocent man.”. THAT is exactly why the death penalty is as immoral as it is reprehensible…not that Gov. Perry gives a damn about that. What he cares about is that it burnishes his credentials as a “Law and Order” Conservative.
I’m sure Cameron Willingham would appreciate being sacrificed to further Rick Perry’s political prospects. Hey, it was for the Greater Good, no?
