Saddam to Hang

The appeals court has upheld the death sentence for Saddam Hussein, former dictator of Iraq. He is to be hanged within 30 days. Saddam is currently on trial for more crimes. If hanged before that trial ends, the trial will continue.

I am a proponent of the death penalty, but I never, even in this case, rejoice when someone is sentenced to death. I can't help but feel that sometime, this person deviated from a path where they could have been an asset to society.

If Saddam had never deviated from his original path, perhaps he could have lead Iraq into becoming a world power. With the oil Iraq has, the potential was there. But he chose a different path where he became a tyrant. Elections were held, but the citizens of Iraq had no choice but to vote for him. The women of Iraq, if they caught the eye of one or the other of his sons, knew they could be kidnapped and raped. In a world where women must remain virgins, this was devastating. And there could be no retribution. Fathers and brothers, and even husbands who protested could just disappear. That's if the woman was returned to her family and not murdered.

If a man chose to speak out again Saddam, he could be tortured and killed. The details of the torture can be found in any number of places. I won't describe what happened; it's so gruesome I can't bring myself to even try. When you think about the tortured being killed, you might think about hanging, being beaten to death, shot, stabbed, and maybe other methods of murder. Think about being shredded. Yes, that was an option.

No, I can't rejoice, but I can say that, in my opinion, it's just.

Christmas Card

For My Secular Progressive Friends:

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all. I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2007, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere . Also, this wish is made without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishee.

By accepting these greetings, you are accepting the aforementioned terms as stated. This greeting is not subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for herself/himself/others, and is void where prohibited by law and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher. This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.

For My Traditional Conservative Friends:

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

MARVELOUS INNOCENCE

It was the day AFTER Christmas at a church in San Francisco. The pastor of the church was looking at the manger scene, when he noticed that the baby Jesus figure was missing from the cradle.

He immediately turned and went outside, and saw a little boy with a red wagon walking down the street. And in the wagon, was the figure of the infant Jesus.

So he walked up to the boy and said, "Son, where did you get that little baby Jesus that's in your wagon?"

The little boy smiled and replied, "I got him from the church."

"And why did you take him?" asked the pastor.

The little boy replied, "Well, about a week before Christmas, I prayed and I told Jesus if he would bring me a red wagon for Christmas, I would give him a ride in it!"

I've heard it before, but it's still worth repeating

Sad News from Washington, DC

No Nativity Scene in Washington , DC, this year!

The Supreme Court has ruled that there cannot be a Nativity Scene in Washington, DC, this Christmas season.

This isn't for any religious reason. They simply have not been able to find three wise men and a virgin in the Nation's capitol.

There was no problem, however, finding enough asses to fill the stable, and the entire capitol for that matter.

Frosty the Snowman

check it out at http://www.funsnap.com/cmas/frosty.swf