Executions

It was reported today (Aug 17, 2006) that the British
government officially pardoned 306 soldiers who
had been executed for cowardice in World War I.
Recent studies have found that most suffered from post
traumatic stress syndrome,an unknown condition at the time.

For years it has been a question for many: how can a
government kill its own people no matter what their
crime? Isn't murder murder, no matter who does it or
what name you call it? The act, when performed by a
government, changes from murder to another term like
execution or termination since it has become officially
sanctioned and stamped with legal authority and approval.

Is official killing done for revenge or is it a policy
intended to promote fear and control? The few
governments still killing prisoners have different
crimes that warrant execution and different rules for
committing official state murder.

Some countries shoot kneeling prisoners in the back of the head
one day after conviction. Some hang prisoners by ropes,
some inject them with poison, some electrocute them.
Some countries use stoning as a way to kill. Others
behead criminals with swords.

State murder is forbidden in most nations in the 21st
century but certainly not all. If a government kills,
it is supposedly representing the population and killing
for them. Is every citizen in effect an accomplice to murder?

This is not a new argument, but one that will be asked until
the killing stops: how can a government of the people
justify killing its citizens no matter what the crime?

execution = murder = barbarism