You know, there are lots of controversial issues that we deal with on this blog and in our lives. Abortion, gay marriage, war, taxes, and immigration are all issues that I struggle with on one level or another, but there's really one major red-meat, hot-button issue where I've never had much struggle; the death penalty.
I've got a deeply-held conviction that Texas's application of the death penalty is deeply flawed and morally repugnant. That conviction has only been strengthened of late by Texas Monthly's current issue that deals with the numerous exonerations of death-row inmates in Texas (16 in Dallas county alone). On top of that, I came across this today at the Dallas Observer's blog.
Is the (mostly) daily diary of a man on Death Row in Hunstville. He's really an excellent writer, and his entries are worth your time. It's a stark reminder that regardless of your personal opinions about the death penalty, the men and women we execute in this state are human beings, just like you and me.
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