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December 09, 2005

Schwartzenegger vs NAACP: Who is Dumber?

I'm finding my anti-Tookie stuff all over the net. You never know how your writing is going to affect people.

I'm really not stuck on Tookie so much as I am astounded at the twists in logic people put together in his defense. The NAACP head is the latest. I wonder if he might have the organization known as the National Association for Assinine Crip Protection. Or perhaps the Negroes Aiding Assassins, Crackheads & Perverts. Chief pervert would be R. Kelly, of course. I can't think of any crackheads the NAACP has assisted, can you?

Needless to say, Joe Hicks' indignation is shared among most of us in the Old School.

Mr. Hicks sees the NAACP's push for clemency for Williams as a recognition of its history — the organization has long opposed the death penalty — but also as an attempt to regain relevance." The NAACP is graying," he said, pointing to its declining membership, "and I can only think this is a very misguided attempt to connect with black youths in an urban culture attracted to hip-hop and a gangster element that finds Tookie Williams oddly appealing." According to a state NAACP official, the average age of a member is now more than 50. Mr. Gordon said that more than 100,000 people from around the world have signed an NAACP clemency petition, with many — including gang members from as far away as Ireland — writing about how Williams has influenced their lives.

I wonder if I should be particularly shocked at all. I mean 9/11 taught us that anything is possible. Hell, Aldridge Ames was supposed to be recruiting double agents from the USSR and he turned out to be a double agent himself. In the course of human events, anything is possible. Most of the time they have simple explanations, but they almost always have bizarre and complex results.

And so we are witnessing simple stupidity and pigheadedness in the defense of Tookie that will put the NAACP in a bizarre place when he dies. Yes, that's my prediction, or else I don't know Arnold Schwartzenegger. He's a man who wants a political future, so he'll get Tookie the needle he deserves. Arnold has already reaped the political benefit of appearing thoughtful and ethical in this matter, but it goes completely against his character to have mercy on a man who killed a young person. If AS can't read the public on this one, he deserves the political equivalent of lethal injection.

Even before he decides whether Stanley "Tookie" Williams shall live or die, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is scoring badly needed gravitas points for giving clemency a hard think. It's unlikely that Schwarzenegger possesses any doubt as to whether Williams, who admits to having co-founded the Crips, is a coldblooded killer; if he stays Williams' execution, it will surely be an act of mercy rather than forgiveness.

I'm not exactly clear on what contingencies can be made for a stay of execution, but I like Ted Hayes' idea that Tookie's, if granted, should be contingent on the disbanding and pacification of Crip gangs in LA County. First shot from the 'hood, stay recinded.

That said, Arnold has a lot more to lose than any titular head of the rank & file National NAACP. You basically go there when you've decided that being electable isn't a goal any longer. Just ask Julian Bond and Kwesi Mfume.

Posted by mbowen at December 9, 2005 02:25 AM

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Comments

I personally stopped believing in the NAACP years ago, when I noticed most of thier views were not mine.

The unfortunate part of the whole thing is the celebrity status Tookie carries with some people. No doubt that his execution will make him a martyr to his "fans". Which inturn will simply contribute to the creation of more indiviuals like himself.

Posted by: Heresy at December 9, 2005 11:00 AM

Tookie is a very interesting topic to hear being discussed. On one hand you have people saying he commited heinous crimes and should be punished, on the other side you have people who say he has changed and is now doing good for the world. I wonder where all of this would be if individuals got executed at a faster rate than they do? Would all of this have occured sooner or would Tookie have apssed without as much debate and sicussion?
Raymond B
www.voteswagon.com

Posted by: Raymond B at December 9, 2005 02:59 PM

Good point Raymond.
It always seems that the most violent criminals become repentant and passive when the hangman draws near.

Individualy, I feel that there is no pardon. Tookie's victims can not be given a pardon or made whole again from his actions, or his cohorts actions. Tookie chose his ways. Whether he believes he was railroaded or not, he knowingly commited the crimes.
But again, I hate to see a man like this martyred by anyone.

Posted by: Heresy at December 9, 2005 08:30 PM

It's really simple: Tookie Williams deserved to be excuted 25 years ago and should have been. The man Tookie Williams is today, shouldn't be executed. This means if we execute him, we execute a different man.

Would you beat/discipline your child 2 years after he brought home a bad report card?

If not, why not?

ricland

Posted by: ricland at December 10, 2005 08:28 AM

Before I begin, let me reiterate my opposition to death penalty, including for Tookie; but society does have the right to protect itself against preditors. That said, Tookie is the same person (counter to the above poster) who took the lives of at least four other human beings, and to this day is unrepenitant (that's how I interpret claiming innocence in the face of overwhelming physical and eyewitness evidence to the contrary). Tookie is donating his profits from the books everyone loves to some nonprofits. I have trouble with Tookie having any say at all over his book profits -- all that stuff should be going to his victims' estates; they can then choose to donate or not as is their will. The NAACP can flit around in their jet all they want; if they really cared about philosophy and weren't racist, they'd have done the same for Timothy McVeigh. I see Tookie as having neither repented of his sins nor having performed penance for them. I think Tookie ought to be considering doing both, and pretty quickly too.

Posted by: UncleSmrgol [TypeKey Profile Page] at December 11, 2005 12:27 AM

You report card analogy is intersteing but a poor one. We are talking about the murder of people not elementary school or pre-school grade performance. Individuals must accept the consequences of their actions. Tookie made his decision for himself a long time ago.

Posted by: DonaldJeremy at December 11, 2005 12:28 AM

"Would you beat/discipline your child 2 years after he brought home a bad report card?

If not, why not?"

A child with a bad report card can bring up those grades in two years (shoot, better be the next time he gets a report card if the child is my own). A murderer can not bring back the people he killed.

Bad analogy...

Posted by: Jade at December 11, 2005 09:51 AM

Outstanding post.

I'm of the opinion that the "whole Tookie" has to be looked at in this case.

That means the man who killed four people, the man who writes childrens books, and the man who formed (one of) the most violent gangs in history, undoubtedly responsible for hundreds or thousands more deaths.

When I look at the "whole Tookie", I want him executed.

Posted by: Crazy Politico at December 11, 2005 05:39 PM

Hells bells are ringing at San Quentien tonight. Tookie's time on earth has extended far longer than deserved. Let the poison start flowing through the killer's viens and and may the devil welcome you on Dec 13th.

Posted by: Shaman at December 11, 2005 09:46 PM

crackheads? How about Marion Barry?

Posted by: Caltechgirl [TypeKey Profile Page] at December 12, 2005 01:34 PM