#7 - Execution Case in Ohio

In Columbus, Ohio, a judge has rejected an inmate’s claim that he should not be executed because he is obese. Death row inmate Ronald Post shot and killed a hotel clerk, Helen Vantz, in northern Ohio nearly thirty years ago and has been on death row since he was convicted of the crime. Post has asked for his execution to be delayed because his extreme weight could lead to a “torturous and lingering death.” The judge has rejected his claim because there are not enough issues to warrant a legal challenge. This is the second time that Post has asked for the delay in his execution. The first time he challenged his execution was in 1997 with similar claims. Post weighs nearly 480 pounds. There have been situations with previous death row inmates that were considered to be obese where it took hours to find the inmates veins. Post’s lawyers argue that his weight will make it difficult for the execution team to find a viable vein for lethal injection.

                The question of whether or not execution is humane punishment has been a long standing debate among many in the U.S. The U.S. has made it possible for the executions to be as humane as possible by using lethal injections, where the inmate is put to sleep before given the dose of the deadly second and third medications. So, in Post’s case, he is trying to convince the judge that because of his weight, the lethal injection would actually cause him pain during his dying moments. In other words, he’s trying to say that the lethal injection would be inhumane, therefore should be postponed until he is at a safe weight for the execution.

                The guy is on death row for a capital crime. The question that the judge is probably asking himself is whether or not it matters if Post suffers any pain at all while he is dying. He obviously had to make his decision with valid reasons behind it, but it really is a question of where the judge stands on the issue. In the United States, only 37 of the 50 states utilize the death penalty. For the people that were directly affected by the murder he committed, I’m pretty sure they could care less about how much pain Post will be in if his weight alters the process of the lethal injection. Post would need to come up with a better supported argument than just the pain issue.

#6 - Puerto Rico

     The commentary posted by my classmate is in regards to Puerto Rico voting to become the 51st state of the U.S. This caught my attention because as he stated, the nation and the nation's media were so enthralled with the presidential election that they paid little to no attention that Puerto Rico was also voting to become the 51st state. The presidential election was pretty intense and everyone's focused was who was going to be our next president. This is a thought that crossed my mind the very next day when  the media finally put some attention on Puerto Rico. I was caught by surprise.
     I think that Mr. Nooning's intended audience is everyone that had no clue about Puerto Rico, and that is a pretty large part of the nation. Even though Puerto Rico has always juggled with the decision, it's never been such a big deal to the majority of Americans such as now when 61% of the territory voted to become a state. That is pretty big news and Nooning is using this opportunity to make the readers aware of the difficult decision that Congress has to soon make. Those that are concerned about the budget should have their ears perked because of the financial burdens that could possibly be brought on by Puerto Rico. Nooning claims that the U.S. would be assuming Puerto Rico's unemployment rates and the the additional funding that would have to be sent to island. Nooning also states that there is issue over the fact that the majority of Puerto Ricans speak spanish because of the anti-immigrant sentiments of some of the states. Political parties are also playing an issue. While many believe that Puerto Rico would be a blue state, it is difficult to say which way it will swing because of the political issues that they tend to focus on. Nooning favors Puerto Rico, but is still concerned with the commitments that the U.S. will be making if Congress decides to make the island a state.
     I agree that Congress has so much to consider; however, the U.S. has been in Puerto Rico for so many years that it is about time it is made a state. According to the U.S. council for Puerto Rico, they are more concerned over equality than anything else. They believe that many of the territory's problems are a direct result of the undefined relationship between the U.S. and Puerto Rico. I believe they are right because with out knowing where they stand, they have little chance of moving forward.
   

The Nation's best interests, or self-interest?

On Friday, November 09, 2012, David Petraeus resigned as director of the CIA. Petraeus is a retired four-star general that is renowned for his leadership in Iraq and Afghanistan.  He has reportedly resigned after an FBI investigation discovered that he was having an affair with Paula Bradwell, his biographer and an Army Reserves officer. David Patraes has been married for 38 years to Holly Petraeus. There is no doubt that the act is a serious “no, no” because of the position he held. Such an act is considered a breach of security. Had a foreign government found out about the situation, Petraes and Bradwell could have been black mailed. And, this offence is enough to warrant court martial. However, despite the serious consequences of a marital affair for someone in the position of CIA Director, the timing of his resignation has stirred up questions of why now and how long did the President really know about it. Petraeus was supposed to testify about the 9/11 attacks this year in Benghazi, where terrorists attacked a U.S. consulate without ever receiving aid from the U.S. military. When news of the attacks broke, the CIA reported that it was a protest gone bad due to an anti-Muslim film. Weeks after, the truth came out that it was a deliberate premeditated attack and that CIA officials knew about it even while the attack was happening but denied sending military support to those still alive and fighting for their lives. The question about David Petraeus’ resignation is not "why did he do it", it is could there be an underlying reason why the FBI reported the information about the affair just before Patraeus was to testify about the Benghazi attack?

                The answer to that may never be known, but it is extremely suspicious. It’s possible that Patraeus had information that could be detrimental to the CIA and the Whitehouse regarding their decisions and failed cover up bogus story about the Benghazi attack. What is extremely worrisome is that Washington and our newly re-elected President have obviously determined that a marital affair is far more of a serious national security threat above a right out attack in progress on a U.S.  consulate by terrorists, especially during a presidential election where information most definitely would have hindered the chances for the incumbent to win the election. One can only hope and pray that there are some officials in Washington that have the moral standards to recognize what a serious national security breach is.