Goodest Friday, my gentle readers.
Well, to start off with some good news, I have it on semi-good authority that I am back amongst the living. No, I was never close to death (that I know of) but having had covid as long as I did, I had to at now and then times, wonder which was the better option!
But
I am, now and still, looking down at the grass. Phew!
We had a response to my question of last posting, i.e., WWJD in regard to the Old-Testament-Christian-sanctioned murder of Christa Gail Pike. I hope her sentence of death is at least commuted to life in prison without parole.
Now, finally, we have the sentence for one-time Major, now Inmate Nidal Hasan—death by firing squad—to be live-streamed for the enjoyment of the general public. Our country falls, give us circuses! I know, public executions were great entertainment through the ages, including here where hangings were held in the town square. And if the ropes weren’t tied correctly, people danced as they strangled instead of dying of a broken neck. Picnic lunches were brought, bets made, and a good time was had by all. Well, at least by the spectators.
When I was in 5th or 6th grade, we were taught in school that the primary objective of prison, was rehabilitation of the offender. I remember writing the Governor of Oregon, on lined notebook paper, a letter, that if that was true, how could we rehabilitate a dead person? And, by golly, he responded with a thoughtful missive. Alas, it disappeared years ago. I realize now, that the primary purpose of prison is to get the perp off the street and into private & pay-prison where the perp is used as a slave.
So, I am against state-sanctioned murder. Full stop. And I am the first to admit if I ever lost someone close to me in a heinous manner, I might change my mind. But I don’t think so. I also think that if we are going to have it, Firing Squad is probably the least awful. It’s quick, and even if the bullets miss the heart by a wee bit, the shock waves will do the deed.
So, even though Inmate Nidal Hasan wounded 32 of my brothers and sisters, and killed 13, I still don’t think he should die for it. Because I think he should be kept alive and aware as long as possible and know he will never fly in a plane again, run on the beach again, hold a woman in his arms again, be a respected human being again, be free to choose anything again, sleep in a dark room again. The rest of us must live in this world with our defugalties, our guilts, our losses, why the hell should he get to check out early and at our expense?
So now that I’m back to feeling human, or mostly human, I’m also back to writing poetry. And cleaning out over 600 emails from my inbox. Can you guess what Auntie Lenora is going to be doing over the next couple of days????
The Brooks Falls cameras are still on, though the number of bears has decreased, as the number of fish have decreased, but still worth watching—especially when the mama bears with their coys (cubs of the year) show up. Kinda hard to watch them and remember they are wild animals and we are just an alternate source of protein as far as they’re concerned. (Actually, they tend to stay away from humans as much as possible, unless mama has cubs near by.) And I found out they don’t really hibernate, they remain in a semi sleep state called torpor, and can waken in a heart beat, so if you’re out doing winter hiking, stay away from ‘sleeping’ bears. You’ll both live longer.
Gentle Readers, know I love you, I appreciate you, and I wish you Covid-Free health and well-being all the days of your life!