Wednesday, April 15, 2009

florida changed its mind

My yummy baby is lying on my lap, kicking his feet and trying to suck his thumbs.  Well, maybe he's not trying for the thumbs, specifically, maybe he'll just settle and suck any old finger.  But he's trying.  And yawning.  It's all very adorable.

His eyes have turned bright blue (score another one for the mama!), and are starting to focus as a pair instead of that whole creepy baby eyes don't work together thing that they tend to do for a while when they're super new.  

He gained weight in excess of a pound in the past week, despite being a Chugging-style nurser who pops the tops and drains it in under five minutes, and then heavers the contents of his belly all over me, himself, the sofa, the cats, the pillow, the clothing, the floor... whatever he can hit.  Is it sport or just amusing for him?  He probably won't remember by the time we can chat about how wet jeans and wet unders are really not super comfy.

It's still fascinating, the whole having a new baby in the house, even though new puppies all have the same tricks: eat, sleep, poop, pee in their eyes, cry.  We all are completely in love with this little man.  Everyone kisses him so often he's started brushing us away with his hands.  We are SO annoying!

And yet, people kill their live, adorable children.  Casey Anthony, for those of you who live under a rock, is being tried in Florida for allegedly murdering her daughter.  I can't remember exactly how old she was when she "disappeared", but I'm thinking she was about three or four.

How long those years must have been for Caylee Anthony.  How much abuse did that innocent child suffer before being murdered?  Because, let's be honest, people, kids don't just one day get murdered by their parents.  There's a path, a long chain of events, building blocks that pile up one on top of the other... lots of things happen before a kid gets murdered by a parent.

If Casey Anthony gets convicted, and for the record, I think the only way she'll walk is if she gets a jury as stupid as the one that acquitted OJ Simpson back in 1995, she could find herself on death row.

What is the point of the death penalty?  I'm being serious.  Why is it an option?  Is it impossible to be unaware that the death penalty exists?  I think not.  Look at Texas, for crying out loud.  Those people down there know how to exercise them some death penalty.  And yet, people in Texas continue to commit crimes that have been deemed sinister enough to warrant being killed as a punishment.  

I'm not just bagging on big ol' Texas here, lots of other states have the death penalty.  

Like Florida.  And yet?  Casey Anthony (may or may not have) killed her daughter.

Convict her if she's guilty.  But will sticking a needle in her arm bring back that sweet-faced little girl?  Will it erase the years of abuse and neglect that likely preceded her death?  Will it ease anyone's conscience for standing by while the little voice in their ear whispered, Do something, you know things are not right in this situation.   Will it cause another person to actually listen to their conscience, and get help instead of abusing their child?  Will it spur a bystander to action, to ask questions and stand up on behalf of other hurting babies?  

Will it truly make Casey Anthony pay for what she has done?

Not a chance.

14 comments:

  1. It just means she'll never have to face the torment of what she did. I hope she lives a long, long time -

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  2. I agree...the death pentalty doesn't deter people..but I think this recent development will make it harder for her to be found guilty, unfortunately. I live about an hour from Orlando and it's ALL WE HEAR ABOUT. I can't wait for the damn trial to be over.

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  3. This topic of the death penalty brings mixed emotions. My dad is a corrections officer. so part of me feels like: the less scum he has to deal with the better. But then the other part of me feels like: let her sit and rehash her miserable life forever and if shes lucky maybe some other inmate will abuse her like she abused her daughter. then she will live the next 80+ years of her life knowing how her daughter felt.

    The one thing that pops into my mind though at this point is: She will stand before God one day. and He will ask her if she did all she could do to bring her daughter up to love and fear him. and Only she and God know the answer to that.

    In the mean time what are we (myself and my husband) doing to be sure we are doing all we can do to rear our children up to love and fear Him?

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  4. I'm with you.

    totally.

    About everything you wrote here.

    Except for the part about being spit up on. That I could do without.

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  5. The death penalty has never been a deterrent. It seems to be a way to get evil people from doing the same thing again and keep the prisons less crowded. But, don't ask me, I'm very liberal.

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  6. Award at my place for ya!

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  7. Yah for blue eyes!

    And, I can agree about death not bringing 'justice' or resolution. I do agree with the death penalty when it comes to serial killers..those Charles Mansons, Ted Bundys who will continue to weird out the world from a cell until they are taken care of.

    If it's debated from a "what's the point of this" standpoint, does jail really deter crime? I think the point is more to protect society from criminals. I don't know - it's like w/ that Andrea Yates lady - if she ever becomes a sane person again, there's nothing we can do to her that will be worse than facing her actions w/ a sane mind..

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  8. I'm with Ree. Living with the guilt and knowledge of what she did must be worse than death.

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  9. They should put her in a cell plastered with pictures of her kid. I cannot fathom someone hurting their own child.

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  10. Does she feel guilty? Or remorse? Does a person who kills a baby feel?

    And back in the day, a bunch of my relatives worked in corrections. (Say it with me: Attica! Attica!!! Movie reference, anyone? Also they chant that at the high school football games, too. It's totally weird.) Rapists and baby killers are marked people when they get inside the walls. Their days are numbered, or at least that's how it works at our local maximum security facility.

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  11. I think she's a sociopath. The person she thinks about most is herself.

    I'm in a weird sort of way. These things turn convention on its head. (Convention, of course, being that men are usually the offenders.) There's Casey, and then that monster who killed Sandra Cantu. Women, both.

    What do we do?

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  12. it baffles me. i have no answers. there are positives and negatives to both sides of the story.
    hi ... i'm jen ... and i cannot (apparently) get off the fence.
    and i'm also a geek and i love you too (because who wouldn't love a woman that expresses her opinions?) ... the end.

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  13. Yes, in Texas we do like our death penalty. Sad. We also like our right to bear arms - because we use our semi-automatic assault rifles for target practice :).

    Anyway, good lord Pamela - think happy thoughts! No murdered children thoughts while nursing the wee one. Of course, I am one to talk. I always planned my funeral when nursing a newborn. Because I was convinced I was dying. Every time. Just a little post-baby whacko-smacko-crazies I got...um...let's see....5 times. (BTW, my funeral would have been awesome. Seriously. And everybody would have been bawling. Especially the people who didn't like me. They were going to feel really really bad and wish they had been nicer to me....).Yeah, nursing the old newborn and thinking crazy stuff. Good times.

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  14. I'm not convinced the Sunday school teacher did it - just too much of a stretch - and sexual assault part doesn't seem a likely fit w/ the suspect, you know?

    Murder? maybe I could see her doing that, but sexual assault? huh?

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talk to me, people. because you know i get all giddy when you do.