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At 11:20 AM 7/7/98 +0200, you wrote:
>> > Murder is punishable by death,
>>
>> Oh. Right. And then you'll have to kill the executioner, of
>> course.
>
>Obviously not, because, as the name says, he's an *executioner*,
>not a *murderer*. Murder = illegal killing, execution = *legal*
>(sanctioned by law) killing. It's the context that counts. The
>murderer kills "innocents", the executioner kills murderers.
>
>> > the mode of
>> > punishment being so that it fits the crime.
>>
>> Yeah, what the hell, we really had it sorted out in Old Testament
>> days, eh?
>
>Actually, this kind of justice goes a lot further back than the OT,
and
>yes, some things have a timeless value. I don't give a crap whether
>some method is mentioned in the bible or not, as long as it works.
>Equal retribution is as fair as you can get with justice, other
methods
>are completey arbitrary.
>
>> > Justice is served "swift &
>> > sure", within weeks of the arrest.
>>
>> So you plan to spend an enormous amount of money on the judicial
>> system?
>
>On the contrary, without years of appeals it would be considerably
>cheaper than the present justice systems. Furthermore, it would be
>automated wherever possible to further increase speed and
efficiency,
>and reduce costs.
>
The ideal of swift and sure justice is wonderful - as long as it is also INFALLIBLE. Until that day arrives, I will be happy to pay taxes to support the present system of appeals and proof beyond a reasonable doubt before enacting any permanent punishment on anyone. In fact, here in Illinois, there have been several celebrated cases of prosecutors LYING to make political points off the condemned bodies of poor mopes who were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Perhaps capital punishment should be put off until the advent of perfect justice? Until the state can be absolutely sure of never condemming an innocent, they should not have the power of life and death.
A person defending himself has the supreme advantage of knowing that the person they are shooting is guilty of attempting a crime against person or property, and therefore is not constrained by the limits that shuold be placed on states.
Chuck Kuecker
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Chuck Kuecker, President
C K Enterprises, Inc.
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Cary, Il 60013
USA
(847) 639-2771
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www.mcs.net/~ckuecker/