Tookie and Arnold, an interesting battle

Tookie the former head of a violent gang in West-LA now faces death, not by his opponents in the street, but sanctioned by US law. Arnold, the former body-builder and movie cartoon figure from films like "Exterminator" has the chance as governor of California to either pardon or to exterminate him. But you know, it's not that easy. Tookie had a revelation and transformed his previous anger into constructive energy to help people in troubled areas to fight violence with peaceful means. His series of eight books against gang-violence is now even used in elementary schools across the US to educate young people about the dangers of gang activities. For this work he has received an award from President Bush, and he has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize five times! But it doesn't matter if Tookie has redeemed himself from his past gang activities and now is a pioneer in the work of turning youth away from destructive gang life, what matters is that the United States is still stuck with medieval practices of hanging the guilty by the rope, or by modern methods using the syringe loaded with deadly poison.

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It is Monday evening and I just visited the BBC news website. There it says quoting Arnold:

"After studying the evidence, searching the history, listening to the arguments and wrestling with the profound consequences, I could find no justification for granting clemency," Mr Schwarzenegger said.

So what that means, is that "Tookie" Stanley Williams will be executed tomorrow (Tuesday Dec. 13, 2005)

Besides the profound issue around the question of capital punishment that goes beyond the boundaries of California .... Arnold just wrote his own death sentence!!! (of course politically). He will now not be voted in to an other term in office.

"Oahil boee back" is what we knew from him in the past. But the old Austrian saying from his home-country: "Geht's alle scheissen" might fit his present attitude perfectly.