Capital Punishment

[gowlerk 2,245]

This has moved away from punishment for crime to who is responsible and should pay for acts of war. We are all survivors and we are descended from the ones left standing. We all share responsibility which is why almost all war crimes go unpunished. It is in our nature. 

 

[riggerrob 643]

Buffy Sainte-Marie's song sends chill down my spine.

[gowlerk 2,245]

1 minute ago, riggerrob said:

Buffy Sainte-Marie's song sends chill down my spine.

Yes, I have a difficult time listening to it.

[winsor 236]

13 hours ago, Phil1111 said:

The best example of WW2 conduct that illustrated attacking civilians. Was US bombing of Japanese cities with incendiaries. "the Tokyo firebombing was aimed largely at civilians, in places including Tokyo's downtown area known as shitamachi, where people lived in traditional wood and paper homes at densities sometimes exceeding 100,000 people per square mile.

"There were plenty of small factories, but this area was chosen specifically because it was easy to burn," says historian Masahiko Yamabe, who was born just months after the war's end.

Another departure from earlier raids: the bombers flew low..."It was a blazing firestorm. I saw a baby catch fire on its mother's back, and she couldn't put out the fire. I saw a horse being led by its owner. The horse balked and the cargo on its back caught fire, then its tail, and it burned alive, as the owner just stood there and burned with it," she said.." From "Deadly WWII firebombings of Japanese cities largely ignored"

Gen'l Curtis LeMay's stated intent was to reduce Japan's population 'by half.'  If that goal wasn't achieved, it wasn't for the lack of trying.

[Phil1111 1,149]

4 minutes ago, winsor said:

Gen'l Curtis LeMay's stated intent was to reduce Japan's population 'by half.'  If that goal wasn't achieved, it wasn't for the lack of trying.

The secretary of defense under President Kennedy. That General LeMay!

I find no difference between that and using artillery indiscriminately to shell cities to achieve the same goals. i.e. Russia.

[wmw999 2,515]

21 minutes ago, Phil1111 said:

The secretary of defense under President Kennedy. That General LeMay!

I find no difference between that and using artillery indiscriminately to shell cities to achieve the same goals. i.e. Russia.

a. I agree

b. He was also George Wallace's running mate in 1968

Not my idea of a nice guy, frankly.

Wendy P.

[JerryBaumchen 1,422]

5 hours ago, Phil1111 said:

The secretary of defense under President Kennedy. That General LeMay!

I find no difference between that and using artillery indiscriminately to shell cities to achieve the same goals. i.e. Russia.

Hi Phil,

LeMay was never Sec of Defense.  McNamara served as JFK's SoD.

Jerry Baumchen

[JerryBaumchen 1,422]

5 hours ago, wmw999 said:

a. I agree

b. He was also George Wallace's running mate in 1968

Not my idea of a nice guy, frankly.

Wendy P.

Hi Wendy,

And, to some, he was a man's man.

I was in the USAF [ '59 - '63 ] when he was there.  He had a reputation as one mean SOB.

Jerry Baumchen

[Bokdrol 44]

To touch on the original topic/question i.r.o. death penalty, there's an interesting, if sad, story on the BBC webpage about a young lady, Edith Thompson, who was hanged at HMP Holloway exactly 100 years ago yesterday. She was found guilty, along with her lover, of the murder of her husband. Draw your own conclusions if you are inclined to read it. If not, suffice to say that it illustrates perfectly why capital punishment should never again be on the UK's statute books.