Btk Case

[Libby]

Good to have you with us, laran.

I agree that it's not fair that some prisoners have all these facilities. It's usually the long-terms prisoners and I gather some of them find prison life much better than the life they had outside. Most of the short-term prisoners don't get these luxuries.

I suspect a lot of it is to do with the kind of people these long-term prisoners are - it's probably easier to give them all these facilities just to keep them amused and not be trouble-makers. It's a pity they can't be made to work for their living - at least that would pay for their TV.

I also have problems with the death penalty - I don't think the state should engage in "cruel and unusual punishment", which a lot of execution methods are. A few decades ago, I read an article in a science magazine where scientists had evaluated the various methods used at that time and calculated how long it would take people to die. That was quite horrifying and that's what turned me against the death penalty. Plus, of course, the very many cases of wrongful conviction. But also I wouldn't want a quick exit for the guilty. You may have heard of the UK case of a doctor, Harold Shipman, who killed very many of his patients. He committed suicide, and the timing was quite calculated so as to ensure his wife was entitled to his pension. That added to the distress of his victims' families who would have preferred he rotted in jail for a long, long time.

Your grammar (and spelling and punctuation) are absolutely fine - much better than some of us who have English as our first language. :grin: You might already have found the French language forum, if that is your first language, but please feel free to join in any discussions anywhere on the board.

Perhaps I can just remind everyone that if there's a word or a phrase they don't understand, please just ask. I'm British, and I don't always understand some of the terms Americans use - and we are supposed to speak the same language!