Published writer, compulsive reader, Old School Whovian, Match Game enthusiast, NKOTB fan, data hoarder, and - surprisingly, given that list - married with four kids. Welcome to my take on life, fatherhood, entertainment, and whatever strikes my fancy. Enjoy!
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Those Across the River by Christopher Buehlman
Yesterday I finished reading Christopher Buehlman's debut novel "Those Across the River" It's a gothic horror story set in rural Georgia in the 1930's. It is WONDERFUL, a dark decent into terror tempered by Buehlman's smooth, poetic language. I enthusiastically recommend this book. Wonderful.
The Media takes a moral stand - When it's Good for Business
I don't want to turn this age into a political battleground, as I'm content with its move towards "Daddy Blog" but I am bothered by the media and popular reaction to the execution of *convicted* cop-killer Troy Davis.
In the 20 years since the murder his side has certainly won the 'battle of the press' and fostered a myth around his actions that day, and the identity of the 'real' killer.
I wasn't there. I also didn't run the investigation and see every bit of evidence, both that which saw light in the courtroom and that which was ruled inadmissible. I didn't sit on the jury and weigh the pros and cons of what was in front of me. I didn't sit on any of the judicial reviews and comb through the evidence again and again.
So I don't know if he was truly guilty, and I never will. Of course, unless your bio reads different than mine, neither do you. So, lacking any personal evidence and unaware of any conspiracy theory that doesn't reek of fiction, I will support the decision made by the judicial process and reaffirmed by it time and time again.
Do I support the death penalty? Yes. I'm not overly keen on it, but I have no moral outrage at the thought of a killer meeting his end at the end of a (legal) rope. On the other hand, having spent the last 37 years in a state without the death penalty, I don't yearn for its expansion.
Is it merely legal revenge? I think that's an overused argument. To some extent all punishment is a matter of vengeance, simply by its nature, but if our system was geared towards that goal alone there'd be a lot more 'tit for tat' sentences out there. The last time I checked battery convictions don't result in a state ordered beatings. It seems to me that the death penalty is, like it or not, what it's advertised to be: a dramatic, supreme penalty for a heinous crime.
But let's switch gears. Put aside Davis' innocence/lack thereof aside. I am appalled - and I do not use that word lightly - at the hypocrisy of the political left. A consistent running theme of this media circus has not been the Davis case itself, but how the death penalty as an institution is a black mark against our society. Any such use of our judicial power, I have read time and again, soils our collective soul.
As I write this, CNN.com is leading with a story that reads "Troy Davis may be dead, but his execution has made him the symbol for the global movement to end the death penalty." Actor Alec Baldwin has tweeted non-stop on the issue in the last 12 hours, and among his doozies is:
Wonder if the [cop's]family will seek death penalty for US leaders who killed thousands of US soldiers and countless innocent Iraqis
Which leads me to my point. This isn't about Davis. It isn't about race. It isn't about justice, or changing the world. It's all about a blind reflexive devotion to your clique, in this instance the 'cool kids' who believe their primo seat in the cafeteria depends upon their devotion to Davis. (BTW, Alec Baldwin is a smart man. But I would lay down money that most of the celebs yapping about Davis couldn't pick him out of a lineup - no pun intended).
What evidence do I have for this? Well, there's this: earlier in the day, mere hours before Davis met his end, a Texas man was executed. I heard no great media defense of this man, no strong and unwavering devotion to the philosophical notion that state sponsored killing was wrong.
Why not? Because the Texas case wasn't good theater. He was a white man, an admitted racist, who was convicted of the brutal dragging death of a black man fifteen years ago.
Apparently, public objections to the death penalty are decided not by a consistent moral code but by whether or not you can get some good press out of the deal. And a racist white guy just doesn't fit the bill.
I am saddened, not by the death of two human beings who in all likelihood had no compunction about dealing out death themselves, but by a society that seems all the more fragmented and shallow because of the existence of a man named Troy Davis.
That may be his biggest crime of all.
In the 20 years since the murder his side has certainly won the 'battle of the press' and fostered a myth around his actions that day, and the identity of the 'real' killer.
I wasn't there. I also didn't run the investigation and see every bit of evidence, both that which saw light in the courtroom and that which was ruled inadmissible. I didn't sit on the jury and weigh the pros and cons of what was in front of me. I didn't sit on any of the judicial reviews and comb through the evidence again and again.
So I don't know if he was truly guilty, and I never will. Of course, unless your bio reads different than mine, neither do you. So, lacking any personal evidence and unaware of any conspiracy theory that doesn't reek of fiction, I will support the decision made by the judicial process and reaffirmed by it time and time again.
Do I support the death penalty? Yes. I'm not overly keen on it, but I have no moral outrage at the thought of a killer meeting his end at the end of a (legal) rope. On the other hand, having spent the last 37 years in a state without the death penalty, I don't yearn for its expansion.
Is it merely legal revenge? I think that's an overused argument. To some extent all punishment is a matter of vengeance, simply by its nature, but if our system was geared towards that goal alone there'd be a lot more 'tit for tat' sentences out there. The last time I checked battery convictions don't result in a state ordered beatings. It seems to me that the death penalty is, like it or not, what it's advertised to be: a dramatic, supreme penalty for a heinous crime.
But let's switch gears. Put aside Davis' innocence/lack thereof aside. I am appalled - and I do not use that word lightly - at the hypocrisy of the political left. A consistent running theme of this media circus has not been the Davis case itself, but how the death penalty as an institution is a black mark against our society. Any such use of our judicial power, I have read time and again, soils our collective soul.
As I write this, CNN.com is leading with a story that reads "Troy Davis may be dead, but his execution has made him the symbol for the global movement to end the death penalty." Actor Alec Baldwin has tweeted non-stop on the issue in the last 12 hours, and among his doozies is:
Wonder if the [cop's]family will seek death penalty for US leaders who killed thousands of US soldiers and countless innocent Iraqis
Which leads me to my point. This isn't about Davis. It isn't about race. It isn't about justice, or changing the world. It's all about a blind reflexive devotion to your clique, in this instance the 'cool kids' who believe their primo seat in the cafeteria depends upon their devotion to Davis. (BTW, Alec Baldwin is a smart man. But I would lay down money that most of the celebs yapping about Davis couldn't pick him out of a lineup - no pun intended).
What evidence do I have for this? Well, there's this: earlier in the day, mere hours before Davis met his end, a Texas man was executed. I heard no great media defense of this man, no strong and unwavering devotion to the philosophical notion that state sponsored killing was wrong.
Why not? Because the Texas case wasn't good theater. He was a white man, an admitted racist, who was convicted of the brutal dragging death of a black man fifteen years ago.
Apparently, public objections to the death penalty are decided not by a consistent moral code but by whether or not you can get some good press out of the deal. And a racist white guy just doesn't fit the bill.
I am saddened, not by the death of two human beings who in all likelihood had no compunction about dealing out death themselves, but by a society that seems all the more fragmented and shallow because of the existence of a man named Troy Davis.
That may be his biggest crime of all.
Found
Clara Tung, the missing 11 yr old Greendale girl police were searching for, has.been found unharmed.
Convenient
The word 'convenient' is the most inconvenient word for me to spell in the whole dang language. I just wrestled with it for two minutes trying to reply to a job, spelling it so 'off' spellcheck couldn't offer any advice. Geesh!
Boo
grouchy & under the weather. I went to bed early but woke up 90 min later feeling like crud. Now debating benefits of netflix vs going back to bed. I'll let u know who wins ;)
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Congrats to my Yanks!
Congrats to my Yanks for clinching a playoff spot for the 16th time in 17 seasons - as if there was ever any doubt :)
Day of Fire
Reading 'Day of Fire', a chapter in Dubya's autobiography. I got the chills when he described his trip to NYC after the attacks.
RIP REM
After 31 years together, REM announced today they are "calling it a day" and disbanding. R(etire)IP guys.
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