Don't Care

This would be the 'very' part of 'very dark'. You've been warned.

This is several intertwined stories. I don't know any of the other participants except through the news. Which is my part in the story, mostly. Just reading the news.

The lead story a few days ago was Youssif, a kid from Iraq. I'm not sure why, but this January several masked assailants doused Youssif with gasoline and set him on fire.

For some reason this didn't get press, Last week, though, it was all over the news. For two days the image of this burned kid stared at me whenever I visited cnn.com. Other times the image would creep into my thoughts.

It was that kind of image. Haunting.

On the third day the photo was replaced with that of some guy in Florida's sentencing (his name is well known. I choose not to use it).

In 2005 this guy raped 9-year old Jessica Lunsford.

Which left him with a problem. Our society rightfully frowns on such behavior. What if Jessica told?

So he silenced the victim. Not with threats but with plastic.

He wrapped Jessica in garbage bags and buried her alive.

The obvious question is: why did this guy think this was acceptable?

If an answer was given to this I don't know. Maybe he didn't like Mondays or something. Maybe something in his head was broken.

But at anyrate, he was tried and convicted. He was in the news for his sentencing.

So what is my part in this story? My troubles pale in comparison to immolation and suffocation. After all, bad stuff happens. Screws fall out all the time. It's an imperfect world.

Both these stories seemed greater than just 'bad stuff', though. And they hit me pretty hard. Partly because I've been physically and emotionally tired lately.

Not exhausted. I've been exhausted, I know exhausted. This ain't it.

But back to that guy. I said he was sentenced. Didn't say what the sentence was.

It was death.

Let me be absolutely clear on this. I oppose capital punishment. It is down right embarassing to live in a country that allows the death penalty.

But...

Even though it probably means giving up my imaginary membership card in the imaginary bleeding heart liberal club...

I really don't care what happens to that guy in Florida.