WHY???

[skully]

I've just joined after viewing the CCADP pages.
What I don't understand is why Americans continually "vote in" the people who enforce the death penalty??? As an Australian (and I speak for many) George W Bush was viewed as an international joke... And yet the Americans gave him 2 goes at the top job. I know that a person MUST be presumed innocent and have access to legal representation and have their case heard. But GWB not only promotes the death penalty, he also kicked started the illegal detention of persons in Q-Bay. So I ask again... Why did Americans give him two goes as President?
I don't know much about the American Constitution, but I believe the first President who is able to abolish the death penalty for the whole nation, will be a President who understands that state sanctioned murder is morally, ethically spiritually and legally wrong.

[sdl]

Bush was not voted in the first time. He was APPOINTED by the SCOTUS and it's well know that the election was rigged in Florida by his a$$hole brother, Jeb.

The second time. there was more vote-rigging here in Florida and in Ohio.

[skully]

I guess I'm asking more about "WHY" .....not just for Bush, but for every elected official in every state who has the power of life and death over it's citizens. I can't complain too much about the U.S. considering that my own country is often referrred to as The United States of Australia. We seem to follow everything you guys do but we're about 10 years behind. I have a dreaded fear that one day the death penalty will be re-introduced in Australia. It should be noted that the last person hanged in Australia (Ronald Ryan), appears to have been innocent of the shot fired that killed the person. Only in the last few years evidence has come to light that sheds enough reasonable doubt on Ryan. (Did an innocent man die?? According to law, with reasonable doubt, then yes he did.) I work in Law Enforcement and it is scary how the general feeling amongst my peers is that they want the death penalty to come back. Once again, it is about votes. If the powers that be see a strong shift towards this, then they will obviously start spruking it to get the votes. I hate repeating myself, but once you GIVE a Government this power, then its only a matter of a stroke of the pen to bring it in. AND then the Australian population will have no say in the when, where, why and how. (Due to my job I have to be careful what I say as I can make no public statement about the work of my employer.)

[happyhaddock]

Unfortunately the US public in general doesn't have the depth for anything except simple sloganeering and thus "tough on crime" pushes their buttons like "half off Big Macs" or "10 cents off gasoline".

Example: Sarah Palin's much feared 'Death Panels'.

Guess who was in favor of this 16 months ago?

gov.state.ak.us/archive.php?id=1094&type=6

[sdl]

Aug 16, 2009 23:56:46 GMT -5 skully said:

I guess I'm asking more about "WHY" .....not just for Bush, but for every elected official in every state who has the power of life and death over it's citizens. I can't complain too much about the U.S. considering that my own country is often referrred to as The United States of Australia. We seem to follow everything you guys do but we're about 10 years behind. I have a dreaded fear that one day the death penalty will be re-introduced in Australia. It should be noted that the last person hanged in Australia (Ronald Ryan), appears to have been innocent of the shot fired that killed the person. Only in the last few years evidence has come to light that sheds enough reasonable doubt on Ryan. (Did an innocent man die?? According to law, with reasonable doubt, then yes he did.) I work in Law Enforcement and it is scary how the general feeling amongst my peers is that they want the death penalty to come back. Once again, it is about votes. If the powers that be see a strong shift towards this, then they will obviously start spruking it to get the votes. I hate repeating myself, but once you GIVE a Government this power, then its only a matter of a stroke of the pen to bring it in. AND then the Australian population will have no say in the when, where, why and how. (Due to my job I have to be careful what I say as I can make no public statement about the work of my employer.)

I'm surprised Howard didn't bring it back..he was one of Bush/Cheney's poodles, after all...