Timothy McVeigh

At 7:14am CST today, the Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVeigh was pronounced dead of lethal injection at the Federal Correctional Facility in Terre Haute, IN. McVeigh was found guilty and executed for the killing of 168 people in the Alfred P. Murrah federal building in Oklahoma City, OK on April 19, 1995. To the end, McVeigh showed no remorse over his deed, nor did he deny his guilt. His execution brings to an end the life of the worst mass murderer in US history. But his demise is hardly the end of the story.

As expected, activists both for and against the death penalty were in Terre Haute as the execution took place. Some on hand even empathized with McVeigh as a patriot who did what needed to be done. But all of their presences made it clear that the issue of capital punishment will continue to be debated for many years to come if not forever.

Let me state that up until a year or so ago, I was a firm believer in the death penalty and state sanctioned executions. I'm not saying that I am no longer in favor of it, but I have started to have second thoughts about my convictions. As a determent to murder (or whatever crime has been committed) the death penalty is a miserable failure. The killing of another human being is generally a crime of passion-a paid assassin would be an exception-and as long as humans are passionate beings, murder will occur. It will occur whether the threat of the death penalty exists or not. Of course it will deter the executed from committing any crime in the future. But is the taking of one life to pay for another the right thing to do?

In the case of Timothy McVeigh, his execution seems woefully lacking as a punishment for the taking of 168 lives. Especially given the fact that over the last few months he has shown no remorse and had dropped his appeals and seemed to be welcoming his end. He saw himself as a defender of the constitution and carried out an innovative mission which was completely void of reason. He had a fear and loathing of the federal government that is not uncommon among Americans. The difference is that most Americans would use the proper channels to make changes in the country. McVeigh killed innocent people in a message that was certainly not going to change anything about the government except how they secure their installations around the country and the world. For that matter, he could have done his deed at night when the least amount of people were in the building, but obviously deranged, he completed his mission in the morning of a weekday.

But McVeigh notwithstanding, the greater issue of the death penalty still rages on. I'm not looking at this from the Christian viewpoint that any killing is wrong, be it by a gangster or by the state. But I really don't see how the states execution of a person for the killing of another is a reasonable means of making amends. If it is not a deterrent why do it? The argument that the jails are overcrowded as it is doesn't hold water simply because the number of people executed isn't a significant number of people that is they were alive, a new prison would have to be built.

One major problem with the system is that not all murderers are given the death penalty. Most are not. Where is that line drawn? If people knew that if you commit a murder and are caught, you were going to be killed for your crime, then maybe capital punishment may become a deterrent. But as long as the judicial system continues to operate in its' current fashion, it is highly unlikely a murderer will spend the remainder of his or her life in prison, let alone be executed for it.

So as I continue to struggle with my opinion of whether or not capital punishment is the right thing to do, I think about the survivors of the victims of the Oklahoma City bombing. Was killing Timothy McVeigh by lethal injection the proper punishment? According to the laws of the United States, yes it was. Did it fit the crime? It isn't even close. The constitution prevents cruel and inhumane punishment, but allowing the survivors to beat the crap out of McVeigh on a daily basis seems more relevant to the crime he perpetrated.

But the argument will rage on. Throughout the country and inside of me. Perhaps I would have a different take on it if I was one of the survivors of the victims. But most of us who argue one point or another are not.