Summations Only

So just doing the job right in the first place isn't enough for you, or you assume moral failure anyway and that's why the state's laws matter. Seems like a strange order of things to me.

Nobody has mentioned the murder of the black man Walter Scott by officer Slager after a routine traffic stop. Is that the "system" or is that just a bad cop? Or maybe he's just one of many with a racist bent. He outright murdered the guy then tried to cover it up by making it look like the guy stole his tazer. If it hadn't been for someone able to video the situation there would only have been the officer's word for what happened. It may be that racism is rife in that police department but again is that the "system" or a cultural situation apart from the system? I suppose it's partly a semantic matter but I doubt they have racist official policies, which would be The System, what they have is a culture of racism.The black guy ran away, and maybe we'll find out why eventually. So far no explanation has come out about that. That would be resisting arrest but that's no justification for shooting eight times at him. The cop had to invent a story to justify that.So lately we've been getting real evidence of racism in police departments. I'm glad it's coming out.

Sorry I missed your post on it.True, it's not clear if it was racism but I'd say it's about 99% certain it was. But there is no way the cop felt threatened, it was out and out murder and he obviously lied about what happened.

I merely wondered why he ran because it's why he got shot, although I SAID there was no justification for shooting him -- even ONCE. Outright murder is outright murder. And in my opinion Slager should get the death penalty.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.

I DO have a problem with the "system." Willfully take a man's life, as Slager did, without one iota of justification, not a shred, and you should forfeit your own.

ABE: First, Slager didn't slap me on the cheek, and I'll grant that I need to learn to turn my cheek when people insult me. But Slager didn't insult me.Second, poor Walter Scott is dead. I'll grant that perhaps he could have stopped in his tracks and faced Slager and said "Shoot me again" and that might have had quite an effect on Slager. Too bad that's no longer possible. /ABEThe other cheek does not come into this because it is not what Jesus was talking about. He was teaching individuals, not state authorities, not to retaliate against personal insults to themselves, but state authorities administer God's justice for the sake of having a peaceful and righteous society for everybody. Look it up in any commentary. Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.

You need to read some early American history to see how Christian the laws of this country were originally. Better, you should read the first three hundred years (from the early 17th century), and read at least a hundred writers per century.

You would then be very surprised to find out that English Common Law was based on the Bible.

Right. YOU aren't impressed with the original laws of the country, therefore the laws of the original thirteen colonies, which were of course based on the Bible, should have been ignored completely and treated as trash. They almost were, in the effort to establish tolerance of all beliefs, but in those days tolerance did not mean equality of belief because that would encourage overthrowing the original Christianity by all the anti-Christian religions. So it wasn't until very recently that people of YOUR opinion made it mean equality of belief. Hello Sharia Law. I wonder how happy that's going to make you in the end.You really should make it a project to find out what they thought in those days.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.

Of course as usual we get confusion between rules for the individual and rules for government. So what else is new. You don't like the idea of punishing an outright murderer? No, you'd rather punish the judge. Amazing.It is only the blood of the innocent one has on one's hands, not the blood of the guilty. Slager has the blood of Scott on his hands, but a just determination and punishment of his guilt would bring peace and not bloodguilt on the nation.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.

Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of England. The Project Gutenberg eBook of Commentaries on the Laws of England, Book 1 of 4, by William Blackstone. Search on "God" and "Christ" not "Bible."ABE: You deleted your message?Another copy of Blackstone, Table of Contents:Avalon Project - Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of EnglandEdited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.

I already answered this but not enough to the point: It's by NOT implementing the death penalty that the whole society has the blood of the innocent person Slager murdered on our hands. We share in his guilt by not punishing him properly for his crime.

I agree, and that's a big problem these days.

They caught the kid who killed the nine people in the church in Charleston. So let's find out what possessed him and then execute him by firing squad at dawn. I'm serious. But I expect the usual misquided handwringing about executing a murderer, already expressed on this thread when I proposed it for the murderer of Walter Scott a while back. At least they found the officer guilty of murder in that case. Seemed they might not at first, even with the video evidence.==========
ABE:
As often happens I didn't put myself across very clearly in this post and some read me as angry about the murders and seeking revenge against the murderer. I added some posts later in an attempt to clarify, but I need to try to make it clear here as well, that I have no attitude of revenge whatever, all I'm feeling is deep grief and sadness over the murders. What prompted my post was the anti-death penalty thinking that wants even unambiguously guilty people spared, which I see as against justice, a weakening of society, and against God's command. I can't hate this kid either, he's obviously terribly warped and I suppose there are reasons for that we'll hear about eventually. That wouldn't change my view of the justice of the death penalty. In any case he should be given the gospel in case he might repent and be saved.=====
And to those who objected to my phrase "found guilty" in the case of Officer Slager who shot Walter Scott to death, again just a bad choice of words. At least he was CHARGED with murder which at first looked like it might not happen.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.

I didn't mean to skip the due process, that's what I meant by finding out what was going on in his head, not the clearest way of saying that. Do all the legal things right of course. And I should have added, that before he's executed make sure he hears the gospel loud and clear. I don't wish even a murderer an eternity in Hell.No, this isn't about revenge at all, this is what a society should do with a murderer. He takes a life, his life is to be taken, for the health of society. I'm not looking for any kind of revenge.This killing hurts, is terribly sad in so many ways, but no, revenge is not the right response. Edited by Faith, : No reason given.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.