2002-11-06
I'm over it., posted at 5:49 p.m.
Epiphany in Baltimore has moved to epiphanyinbaltimore.blogspot.com I'm feeling a little better. I cannot for the life of me understand this election, but at least I can accept it. After all, I have no choice. The urge to scream with my head under a pillow has passed; now I just want to bitch and moan a bit.I was cheered up a little bit today at school when all my colleagues were as shocked and dismayed as I was. It makes me wonder where all these conservative folks come from who vote in these elections. Then, I remembered I'm a teacher, and we're not a group exactly known for our conservatism.
Today was a very good day in the classroom. Leave it to a bunch of bright 14-year old kids who don't fully understand the election to lift my spirits. I tried not to think about how Ehrlich's appointment for head of Education will probably institute even more standardized tests than we have right now, and just did my job. And did it well today. I did more of my inner circle / outer circle Socratic Discussion, and it went swimmingly. I was supposed to have this big important woman come and watch my classes, so I went in early to clean my classroom and print out my lesson plans. She never came, but I wished she had. My kids were sharp and kicked some major ass in their discussions today.
Not only that, today was Pajama Day of School Spirit Week. I don't think it's possible to have a bad day on the job when you're allowed - no, encouraged - to wear flannel pants and a long underwear shirt. The kids loved it, too.
I stayed at school until after five finishing up on work, because tonight will be a long night - I'm on my way to the gym, then off to a soccer game for our Baltimore Sports and Social League team.
Oh, yes, and let me respond to another anonymous message-leaver in my guestbook. "A reader" asked today: "i'm curious as to what your position is on the death penalty concerning the two snipers? i know you're against it, but is it possible for ANYONE to oppose giving the two of them the death penalty, if (more like "when") they're convicted?"
Look, if someone is against the death penalty, then they're against it in all cases. Here are my reasons:
I believe the death penalty violates the constitution, because it is cruel and unusual punishment.
It has been proven that it doesn't deter crime.
It is enforced arbitrarily and unfairly. There is irrefutable evidence to this.
I believe it's state-sanctioned murder.
I believe it contributes to our violent society.
It is a fact that it costs our taxpayers much more to send a defendent to the death penalty than it does to keep them alive in prison for the rest of their life.
An eye for an eye makes a man blind.
I believe for the most part in an afterlife, so my view is that killing people lets them off easy for a crime. I think it's much worse to spend 60 years in jail (or the rest of your life, whichever is more) than it is to have your spirit transported to heaven or wherever else your beliefs lie.
And, I'm sorry, but why should I feel like the death penalty would be wrong for these particular killers and not all the other murders that occur in this country? Because they went after rich people in high-class counties? I'm sorry, but there are 300 murders every year in this city, many of them of young people. I didn't feel any more or less angry after these sniper victims were picked off than I did after, say, the death of Rio-Jarell Tatum, a student at another high school in the city here who was murdered in a $10 holdup last spring. I'm not sure why the sniper killings are more special or more sinister, except those happened in the suburbs and got huge media coverage, and Rio-Jarell was a poor African-American kid in the city.
In fact, I'd be especially opposed to the death penalty in the sniper cases because there is little chance that they will receive a fair trial (the media has already pretty much convicted them), and killing them will destroy any possibility that further conspiracy information could ever be gathered from them. Plus, one of them is 17, and I have an even greater problem with the state killing a child than I do an adult.
If they're guilty, put them in jail for the rest of their lives with no possibility of parole. Don't murder them. Two wrongs do not make a right.