Troy Davis' fate "hangs by a thread"

[fractionMan]

words fail me.

 

[stethoscope]

Yep

 

[ElizabethofYork]

Shameful. His conviction was SO full of inconsistencies.

 

[nino_savatte]

Naturally, the Torygraph is full of the usual "human rights brigade" bullshit. Take this one from Brendan O'Neill

Yesterday in America, two men were executed, but you will probably only have heard of one of them: Troy Davis, who was killed in the state of Georgia for the murder of a police officer. The other executed man, Lawrence Brewer, put to death in the state of Texas for murdering a black man in 1998, has barely featured in the news at all. Unlike Davis, he did not win the backing of Amnesty International and its trendy supporters. No one tweeted and retweeted their sorrow over Brewer or made a public spectacle of how heavy his execution weighed upon their hearts, as many did with Davis. No one lit candles outside the American Embassy for Brewer in full glare of photojournalists’ clicking cameras. No one wore t-shirts saying “I AM LAWRENCE BREWER”.
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/b...ty-of-the-human-rights-brigade/#disqus_thread

Or this one from (Dr) Tim Stanley

Back to that hot June afternoon in Hollywood. After hours of testimony from concerned liberals about the “racist” death penalty, a middle-aged screenwriter got up to speak. “My friend’s partner was murdered,” he said (I’m paraphrasing from memory). “I don’t know anything about the arguments for or against this, but I look at her and think that I can’t deny her the justice she deserves. So, if Troy Davis is guilty, screw him.” That’s earthly justice for you. It looks wrong, but it feels right.
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/t...d-any-tears-for-executed-murderer-troy-davis/

 

[weltweit]

I was thinking about Brewer last night but could not think how he related to the issue. But of course what people were getting excited about was the potential execution of an possibly innocent man, Troy Davis.

The emotion was not so much the death sentence is wrong, more it is wrong in this case because there is sufficient doubt. There was afaict no noise about Brewer being executed on Urban.

 

[dessiato]

One commentator said that the reason he couldn't have his sentence commuted was because he couldn't prove his innocence. Probably one of the most gross comments I have heard. Given the level of doubt about the witnesses and the fact that there is no hard evidence to link him to the crime I find it truly repulsive that he has died.

His last words show he was by far the greater man in this whole shoddy affair.

Passing thought, if this happened in another country wouldn't the US want to impose a level of sanctions for breach of human rights? Isn't this a case of double standards?

 

[nino_savatte]

It's all part of the Tory's new liberal-bashing, which they picked up from the States, along with mad-as-a-box-of-frogs evangelical Xtianity

 

[krtek a houby]

Muder is murder, whether carried out by a perp or state. The whole thing is shameful.

 

[nino_savatte]

Yep but only twats like O'Neill and Stanley would seek to frame the anti-capital punishment debate as a purely 'liberal' thing that needs to be excised from the body politic

 

[krtek a houby]

Yep but only twats like O'Neill and Stanley would seek to frame the anti-capital punishment debate as a purely 'liberal' thing that needs to be excised from the body politic

It's a dangerous idea which, I fear, will certainly take root here - if it goes unchallenged...

 

[nino_savatte]

It's a dangerous idea which, I fear, will certainly take root here - if it goes unchallenged...

Well, yes, the Tories are doing their best to emulate their American cousins and instigate a 'culture' war here.

 

[krtek a houby]

Well, yes, the Tories are doing their best to emulate their American cousins and instigate a 'culture' war here.

Do we really have to emulate the less pleasant aspects of the American way all the time? Will Cameron turn out to be worse than previously imagined?

 

[nino_savatte]

Do we really have to emulate the less pleasant aspects of the American way all the time? Will Cameron turn out to be worse than previously imagined?

It's the 'special relationship, innit?

 

[dilute micro]

If there's even 1% of doubt, how the fuck can they even entertain the idea of an execution?

True. I've not read up on this case but sometimes local politics influences things like this. Not saying that's it here. It does seem strange that most of the witnesses would recant their statements and it wouldn't have an effect. That brings into question the value of their testimony in the first place if all it took was 2 to say he's guilty.

 

[ElizabethofYork]

It's a dangerous idea which, I fear, will certainly take root here - if it goes unchallenged...

I doubt it.

 

[frogwoman]

One commentator said that the reason he couldn't have his sentence commuted was because he couldn't prove his innocence. Probably one of the most gross comments I have heard. Given the level of doubt about the witnesses and the fact that there is no hard evidence to link him to the crime I find it truly repulsive that he has died.

His last words show he was by far the greater man in this whole shoddy affair.

Passing thought, if this happened in another country wouldn't the US want to impose a level of sanctions for breach of human rights? Isn't this a case of double standards?

Depends if they were a US ally or not ... one of the US's allies is that beacon of democracy and justice, Saudi Arabia