12/11/2005

Tookie Wilson Should Live

Tookie Wilson should live. Not because he’s a “good person.” Not because he's written children's books. Not because he might be innocent (there's no evidence to support that claim, whatsoever). And certainly not because Snoop Dog or Ed Asner say he should.

In fact, all the effort to make him seem like a good person, or somehow more deserving of commutation than other death row inmates, is counterproductive as far as I'm concerned because it detracts from the real reason he and all his death row comrades should be allowed to live. Namely, that the death penalty confers far too much power to the state. Once that power is conferred, then the justification is simply a matter of degree (one prosecutor tried to get the death penalty for a DUI conviction a few years ago).

As a limited-government advocate, I do not believe anyone, especially an entity as unaccountable as the "state", should have the power to determine who lives and who dies. That decision should be God’s and God’s alone.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

That perspective, comes from someone with a religious belief. Let's say god doesn't exist; should we still allow him to live after the deaths of 4 innocent lives?