Not Making a Killing

James notes, in part, in this entry in Aces Full of Links:

The New York Times ran a story today about the penalty phase of a murder trial in which it was quite clear that the defendant was guilty of a heinous crime. The jurors all professed a belief in the death penalty, some going so far as to say that it wasn't used enough.

But when it came down to the wire, even having seen videotape footage of this senseless killing, all 12 finally voted against the death penalty. Why? Read this fascinating story for yourself.

I like the NYT story, I like the blog entry by James, and I like the comment attached to the entry by Mike. Needless to say, I think the death penalty is another situation where we make the state our God, just as we do in war. The state becomes the ultimate decision maker, determining who will live and will die. It amazes me that people worry about the state invading their privacy, and yet some of the same people have no problem allowing the state to kill. What's more, some of these people then go on to claim to be Christians and get elected president while boasting of how they follow the Prince of Peace. Our capacity for self-delusion knows no bounds.