Bill D:

I really don't think we can argue that killing is RIGHT in Iraq, but WRONG in certain criminal cases. (and do NOT doubt, that is what some are arguing)

Certainly not me.

Lesblack:

For Ebbie, and Stilly River Sage and Bobert and all the other bleeding heart liberals, what would your feelings be if one close to you had been one of Tookie's four victims ???

The same. Why do you think it would be different? Do you think it should be different? That doesn't sound anything like what I think could reasonably be called "justice", and perhaps that's one of my objections to the death penalty. Turns out that one of the bigger factors as to whether you get the death penalty isn't your own race (fortunately, that's no longer quite so determinative although it may still play a role). It's who you kill!!! If you kill a white person, you're more likely to get the chair (or whatever latest "humane" way we have of killing someone). I hate to say it, but the measure of a crime oughtn't be the "worth" of the person who was killed. Which is why I oppose "victim impact statements": when some homeless wretch is killed, it is every bit as much a tragedy and a crime as when the bank president with a successful and handsome husband and two kids gets killed ... even if no one will stand up to mourn their passing or stand up in court and scream for the pound of flesh.

Cheers,