Wednesday
Nov172010
can someone we've never heard of be among the worst of the worst?
Wednesday, November 17, 2010 at 05:21PM
Most of us don't really know how often the death penalty is used. People are executed, and we don't even know their names or what they did. Their crimes made the local news at the time, I suppose. But by execution, they're mostly forgotten.
There are exceptions. People of my generation cite Ted Bundy. Bundy was national news and stayed a household name to the end. But he's an exception.
This has me thinking: If the death penalty has become so commonplace that an execution doesn't make the national news, is that an indication that we're using it too much? The line-drawing questions are always difficult, but if the crimes and criminals have ceased to be newsworthy, could that be an indication that we have not crossed that "worst of the worst" line?
There are exceptions. People of my generation cite Ted Bundy. Bundy was national news and stayed a household name to the end. But he's an exception.
This has me thinking: If the death penalty has become so commonplace that an execution doesn't make the national news, is that an indication that we're using it too much? The line-drawing questions are always difficult, but if the crimes and criminals have ceased to be newsworthy, could that be an indication that we have not crossed that "worst of the worst" line?
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