mbs
> Max,
> Your sense of history is bizzare. Food stamps programs are a product of
> struggles from the left, particularly working class based struggles..The
> death penalty?
>
> Steve
>
> Stephen Philion
> Lecturer/PhD Candidate
> Department of Sociology
> 2424 Maile Way
> Social Sciences Bldg. # 247
> Honolulu, HI 96822
>
>
> On Sun, 10 Oct 1999, Max Sawicky wrote:
>
> > YF:
> > > There is no doubt a feeling of compensatory consolation involved,
which is
> > > expressed in the statement made by the mother of two children quoted
in
> > the
> > > article: "To my surprise I felt nothing but relief that this scum is
now
> > > long gone!" Isn't this exactly the feeling that the ruling class want
you
> > > to have? You are supposed to feel a momentary relief at the
destruction
> > of
> > > minor criminals (a kind of poetic justice that is not otherwise
available
> > > under capitalism, which justly and unjustly exploits you), and your
desire
> > > to feel such relief gives more power to the state, which is not only
full
> > > of major evils but safeguards the evil system of private ownership of
the
> > > means of production with all its attendant evils, major and minor, one
of
> > > which is the production of more criminals than otherwise possible.
> >
> > That the State does something people want does not
> > mean whatever is done should be rejected on principle.
> > By your logic, the State provides Food Stamps for the
> > same evil reasons. But you wouldn't say that FS should
> > be rejected. At least, I hope not.
> >
> > > Through the war on crimes, we've lost and had curtailed many civil
> > > liberties already. Why? Because enough people have felt that we must
> > give
> > > more power to the state in order to punish criminals. Thus, a desire
to
> > > punish or destroy minor criminals ends up punishing the entire masses
of
> > > people. Remember that Biblical metaphor? Selling our birthright for
a
> > > mess of pottage.
> >
> > More or fewer civil liberties is a different matter.
> > Civil liberties are not inconsistent with law enforcement,
> > though conservative thinking would argue otherwise.
> >
> > Executions are not going to make the world much of
> > a better place. Some things are just right and have
> > little or no instrumental importance. I don't believe
> > the existence of CP plays any important role in
> > social control of the masses w/respect to other
> > issues.
> >
> > What offends me is that anti-capital punishment
> > appeals like the one that started this thread typically
> > focus on the suffering of those who deserve no sympathy
> > and block out the suffering of those who do. The latter
> > become non-persons. To me this is emotionally
> > incoherent. I don't mind a reasoned argument
> > against CP. Chances are I would buy a lot of it.
> > But hand-wringing over the condemned is one of
> > my buttons. Push it, and the board will light up.
> >
> > In re:/Philion, there is no glee in an execution,
> > since it is a reminder of something that really
> > is tragic.
> >
> > mbs
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
>