Dear Editor:
The prospect of televising an execution by firing squad as prime-time entertainment raises an unsettling question: Have we become so accustomed to violence that another person’s death can be packaged as a family spectacle?
Gather the children around the television. Bring out the popcorn and soft drinks. Invite Grandma. Settle into the recliners to watch government employees prepare to shoot a restrained human being.
Imagine the educational opportunities. Parents could explain the importance of compassion and human dignity while the government demonstrates how easily those principles can be set aside. Perhaps the adults could even show the children where the household firearms are stored. Naturally, everything should remain locked away. We wouldn’t want the youngsters developing an unhealthy fascination with violence while watching a state-sponsored killing.
Networks could provide expert commentary, celebrity interviews, corporate sponsors, perhaps even a halftime show. Then comes the cliffhanger:
“Don’t touch that dial! We’ll be right back after a brief message from our sponsor—the United States Government. Coming up next: an exclusive interview with our condemned guest, featuring his final words. You won’t want to miss a moment!”
Nothing celebrates family values quite like commercializing death.
Beneath the absurdity is something profoundly disturbing. Turning an execution into public entertainment is grotesque and degrading. I am not suggesting that convicted criminals should escape punishment, nor am I dismissing the suffering of victims and their families. But when punishment becomes entertainment, justice risks becoming a spectacle of cruelty.
What does it teach children when the deliberate taking of a human life is presented with popcorn and commercial breaks? A civilized society should be able to administer justice without turning an execution into a spectator sport.
Perhaps the most frightening part is not the firing squad itself, but the possibility that millions of Americans might tune in. That prospect is more stomach-turning than anything we might see on the screen.
Enjoy the popcorn, children. Apparently, civilization has left the building.
Russ Widener
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