On Hanging

Evidently, people in America think that hanging is an uncivilized way to kill someone. To which I say: why, because it's old? Because, a long time ago, it was the only entertainment people in some villages had?

Let's look at the 'modern', 'civilized' alternatives.

Lethal injection: takes a few minutes to work. Worse yet, it doesn't always go quite right--it takes a physician to set things up, and physicians are forbidden from participating.

Gas chamber: does Holocaust come to mind? Also, there are spectators for these things...and I have to say, filling a room with gas doesn't seem like a very civilized thing to do to someone. Wait, killing someone doesn't seem very civilized at all...but that's a different story.

(Firing squad: cool. Can we relegalize it? Silly Utah-ites.)

And then there's hanging. Two seconds, all you do is open a trapdoor and voila! instant neck breakage. Just make it private and it's civilized. Oh, and I suppose we can have the rope made out of polyester or something instead.

Anyway, hanging is as good a way as any to destroy a symbol. Though I suppose Saddam Hussein, even when incarcerated, was also representative of the potential for things to blow up in the U.S.'s face again. And, honestly, it was the most humane thing the Iraqi government could do to him. The media isn't going to do follow-ups on the status of a dead man; I highly doubt 'Corpse Continues to Decay' would make a very good headline. Just one last, big review of the man's life and opinions from every corner of the world and it'll all be over for most of us.

It's kind of funny, though, how much more significant he is than Gerald Ford was. Oh well--this country has had many insignificant presidents. And is it always bad to be forgotten? Remembering that certain Roman emperors were only noted for the total stability of the Empire during their reigns...I think not.