[fla-left] Bloody execution photos draw gamut of responses(fwd)

Max Sawicky sawicky at epinet.org
Mon Oct 11 08:22:00 PDT 1999


Context, my dear fellow. Yoshie was implying that whatever the Gov does is in its own interest, and we should therefore oppose it. That doesn't follow, on both counts.

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
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
>



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