The Evil That Men Do

...sing it with me, you know the words...what does it do?

People can change. They do it all the time. However, some don't and some do not deserve the chance to prove that they can. I am a proponent of fast (not to be confused with rushed) and harsh punishment for criminals. This is because crime is a choice and because I believe that once a person harms another without justification (i.e., self defense), the game is over and that person no longer has the right to live with the rest of us. If a person can not leave their fellow man be, I want them in chains, making big rocks into little rocks, or in a pine box.

In 2000, then Governor Mike Huckabee commuted the sentences of several violent criminals. I felt that this alone made him unfit for presidency. The violent criminal can have no mercy. If there is a demonstrated capacity for violence in a person, young or old, they can't live with the rest of us any more. This was shown when Wayne Dumond, a serial rapist, raped somebody after he was released from jail with Gov. Huckabee's approval. Gov. Huckabee said that he could not have known the results of releasing a serial rapist from prison. I disagree. I think the behavior of a serial rapist is quite predictable.

Yesterday, another one of Gov. Huckabee's misguided mercy cases murdered four police officers. He walked into a coffee shop and shot them. First off, it's stuff like that that led me to go nearly everywhere armed. Secondly, this guy should not have been walking around with the rest of us. He went to jail in 1989 for aggravated robbery. That, for the record, means that he stole by force or threat of force. I will denounce the Jean Valjeans of the world, but I understand them on some level. They do not use force. The Maurice Clemmonses of the world do not have my sympathy on any level. They are willing to kill and hurt for the stupidest things. They don't deserve to breathe free air.

So why was Maurice Clemmons breathing free air? He violated his parole the first time we let him out of jail. He was reincarcerated for that one, and we let him go again after a while. More recently, he was charged 8 felony counts including assault on an officer and rape of a child. He was out on bond for those charges when he murdered the police officers yesterday. Out on bond with child rape in the wings? Seriously? With a past history of violence? Our mercy has been turned against us. Our willingness to give second... third... fourth chances has been used as a weapon. Why do people tolerate such injuries?

This is why I do not believe in separate charges for juveniles, parole for the violent, and why I do believe in the death penalty. When a person harms another or even threatens harm, why should we let them be free? They could change, but I don't think that we can afford that chance. Crime is a choice. Nobody is forced into it. One can always decide not to harm others. If a person is so defective that they can't help but harm others, then they still can't be allowed to be with the rest of us. Those who harm others must not be tolerated. Toleration of that kind of thing can get you killed. I may forgive, but I will never forget.

Tina Griswold
Ronald Owens
Mark Renninger
Greg Richards
RIP