Murder
"And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in
the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him."
(Genesis 4:8)
Back in those days, murder was pretty clear cut. If you killed someone, it
was called murder. Of course, if you had a reason, then it was justifiable. Back
then, it was an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Or a life for a life. But
in these fast paced and politically correct times, is there justifiable murder?
Webster's Dictionary says that murder is "the unlawful killing of another human
being, especially with premeditated malice." Unlawful killing of another human
being. And most people would tend to agree, that there are circumstances in
which killing someone else is just fine, and even desirable. But what are
those circumstances? What exactly is justifiable killing? Is abortion OK?
How about war? Euthanasia? These are topics that are in hot controversy these
days, as civil rights groups battle political standings that have been around
for dozens of years.
Capital punishment is among those instances of justified killing that has been
debated for years, and continues to be an extremely indecisive and complicated
issue. Adversaries of capital punishment point to the Marshalls and the
Millgards, while proponents point to the Dahmers and Gacys. Society must be kept
safe from the monstrous barbaric acts of these individuals and other killers by
taking their ability to function and perform in our society away from them. At
the same time, we must insure that innocent people such as Marshall and Millgard
are never convicted or sentenced to death for a crime that they did not commit.
In February 1963, Gary McCorkell, a 19 year old sex offender, was scheduled to
hang. But just days before his execution, the then Liberal cabinet of Lester
Person commuted McCorkell to life in prison. His actual term was only a
percentage of that. Less than 20 years later, McCorkell was arrested, tried,... [continues]
"And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in
the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him."
(Genesis 4:8)
Back in those days, murder was pretty clear cut. If you killed someone, it
was called murder. Of course, if you had a reason, then it was justifiable. Back
then, it was an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Or a life for a life. But
in these fast paced and politically correct times, is there justifiable murder?
Webster's Dictionary says that murder is "the unlawful killing of another human
being, especially with premeditated malice." Unlawful killing of another human
being. And most people would tend to agree, that there are circumstances in
which killing someone else is just fine, and even desirable. But what are
those circumstances? What exactly is justifiable killing? Is abortion OK?
How about war? Euthanasia? These are topics that are in hot controversy these
days, as civil rights groups battle political standings that have been around
for dozens of years.
Capital punishment is among those instances of justified killing that has been
debated for years, and continues to be an extremely indecisive and complicated
issue. Adversaries of capital punishment point to the Marshalls and the
Millgards, while proponents point to the Dahmers and Gacys. Society must be kept
safe from the monstrous barbaric acts of these individuals and other killers by
taking their ability to function and perform in our society away from them. At
the same time, we must insure that innocent people such as Marshall and Millgard
are never convicted or sentenced to death for a crime that they did not commit.
In February 1963, Gary McCorkell, a 19 year old sex offender, was scheduled to
hang. But just days before his execution, the then Liberal cabinet of Lester
Person commuted McCorkell to life in prison. His actual term was only a
percentage of that. Less than 20 years later, McCorkell was arrested, tried,... [continues]
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