This certainly took long enough

[outofplace]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10019/1029464-455.stm

About ****ing time. Richard Baumhammers is set to be executed March 18, about 10 years after he murdered six people. He went around Pittsburgh shooting people on a hit list he made up to target minorities. The first victim was a Jewish woman who had lived next door to his parents his entire life.

I admit this one is a bit personal for me. I've known the sister of one of the victims for as long as I can remember. She was a close friend of my aunt, who passed away two years ago, and is one of the most decent people I know. I hope she can find some peace.

I'm sure somebody will have an anti-death penalty comment of some sort to make. Knock yourself out. I'm just glad they're finally going to kill the *******.

 

[WaylonJennings]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

 

[YGBFKM]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

0 to 60 in one post. New league record.

 

[WaylonJennings]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

Not dumb at all.

Revenge as the basis of criminal justice is dumb.

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

Not dumb at all.

Revenge as the basis of criminal justice is dumb.

Incredibly dumb. Adds nothing.

 

[WaylonJennings]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

0 to 60 in one post. New league record.

So someone gets to start a thread saying "About ****ing time" regarding the death penalty, and that's perfectly OK?

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

0 to 60 in one post. New league record.

So someone gets to start a thread saying "About ****ing time" regarding the death penalty, and that's perfectly OK?

Sure. Sounds like the guy deserves it. **** that guy.

Your post is dumb, designed to **** people off, and adds nothing.

 

[outofplace]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

0 to 60 in one post. New league record.

So someone gets to start a thread saying "About ****ing time" regarding the death penalty, and that's perfectly OK?

Yup, it is. This dirtbag's fate was decided many years ago. My comment was directed at how ridiculously long it has taken to get the deed done.

And yes, your response was ridiculous. You want to argue the merits or failings of the death penalty, by all means, go for it. It is a legitimate debate. But I see nothing in your response that adds anything to a serious discussion. And I did admit up front that I am very biased in this case. He caused considerable pain to a dear friend of my family's. And this is not one of those cases where there is some risk that they got the wrong guy. None. It was him. There is no doubt. Fry the ****er (or whatever method they are going to use.)

 

[Ashy Larry]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

Not dumb at all.

Revenge as the basis of criminal justice is dumb.

Waylon...why is it revenge? It's a punishment....like all convicted criminals are given. In his case the punishment was death.

 

[YGBFKM]

Waylon, it's not about OK or not OK. Just pointing out that it took no time at all for this thread's jaw to drop off (few people will get that, but I don't give a ****). Anyhow, it's a death-penalty thread, so I'll type my thoughts on the subject, which are especially fitting for this thread. I'm not a big fan of the death penalty. Seems too much like the state "playing God." It's hard for me to wrap my head around that in general. However, until I'm actually personally affected by a death-penalty case, I will not argue with the feelings of someone who has been.

 

[outofplace]

I appreciate that last bit, YGBFKM. It really does change the perspective a little.

I probably would have agreed with your opinion on the subject 10 years ago. I still think there should be eyewitnesses, physical evidence and a guilty plea before they allow it. There should be absolutely no doubt. That is the case here, or I wouldn't be comfortable at all no matter how much the whole thing pisses me off.

 

[WaylonJennings]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

Not dumb at all.

Revenge as the basis of criminal justice is dumb.

Waylon...why is it revenge? It's a punishment....like all convicted criminals are given. In his case the punishment was death.

To be clear, I meant the OP's advocacy was revenge, not the state's - he said it was "personal" for him. I certainly understand the legitimate argument to be made regarding the death penalty as a punitive measure.

 

[fishhack2009]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

Not dumb at all.

Revenge as the basis of criminal justice is dumb.

Incredibly dumb. Adds nothing.

Nice to see that we can respect each others' opinions.

Calling something dumb adds nothing.

That said, this guy certainly seems to be just the kind of piece of crap the death penalty was intended for. Good riddance.

 

[YGBFKM]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

Not dumb at all.

Revenge as the basis of criminal justice is dumb.

Incredibly dumb. Adds nothing.

Nice to see that we can respect each others' opinions.

Calling something dumb adds nothing.

That said, this guy certainly seems to be just the kind of piece of crap the death penalty was intended for. Good riddance.

This made me laugh.

 

[WS]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

Not dumb at all.

Revenge as the basis of criminal justice is dumb.

yeah, because this guy sure deserves to live.

 

[Starman]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

Not dumb at all.

Revenge as the basis of criminal justice is dumb.

Terminating ruthless killers from existence so they can never do it again is not.

 

[Simon_Cowbell]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

Not dumb at all.

Revenge as the basis of criminal justice is dumb.

No.

You have a stain on the carpet, you remove the stain.

Or, get tile.

 

[outofplace]

So all the victims get to come back to life now?

Dumb.

Not dumb at all.

Revenge as the basis of criminal justice is dumb.

Waylon...why is it revenge? It's a punishment....like all convicted criminals are given. In his case the punishment was death.

To be clear, I meant the OP's advocacy was revenge, not the state's - he said it was "personal" for him. I certainly understand the legitimate argument to be made regarding the death penalty as a punitive measure.

I admitted my bias on this issue. That doesn't mean I throw my ethics out the window. I do have questions about the death penalty in cases where reasonable doubt may have been satisfied in the eyes of the law, but it isn't a 100 percent certainty. In this case, there is no doubt.

It is 10 years removed from the murders, Waylon. I've been able to think about it beyond the simple desire to see the ******* dead for the sake of revenge. I don't think you are giving me nearly enough credit here. You just saw somebody happy about the death penalty finally being enforced after an extremely long wait and don't bother to look at the facts or respect the fact that I was willing to admit my own bias.

I put a hell of a lot more thought into this than you did into your knee-jerk response.

 

[YGBFKM]

Anyone here who is against the death penalty say without certainty that their take on the issue wouldn't be affected if a loved one was murdered? Because I sure as hell can't. It's easy for me to say I have a problem with the death penalty when I'm in no way connected to any of the cases. But I'm pretty sure if anyone close to me was involved, I'd want blood, and I make no apologies for that. I understand there are people who have been brutally affected by a death-penalty case and they still don't support it. OK, I can respect that, even though it's hard for me to understand. But the death penalty is not a black-and-white issue. Murders don't occur in a vacuum.