news worthy....

I did say this blog would be to catch people up on my life and share photos, etc. I am not doing much of that...sorry! I feel the need to vent about the news today...the supreme court ruling on rape and the death penalty got me thinking....and a bit angry.
To put things into persepective...My husband is active duty military...most military members tend to lean to the right and carry more conservative views. I have a pretty liberal thinking father and have tended my life to lend more on the left. What I love about my spouse is that he can listen to my views and respect them even when he doesn't agree and most of the time we can come to common ground on things. As he has grown a little more liberal with each passing year with me, I might have grown more conservative. Although at the core of Susan I am conservative in my personal values and quite liberal in my values for others.
With that being said I was surprised today to have fallen on the side of the conservative supreme court judges and Bush nominees of all things in the ruling on child rapist and the death penalty. I worked with abused children and adults prior to becoming a stay at home mom. I have a great passion for that work and that popluation of people. I believe firmly that violence and abuse is a cycle...people learn their actions from what is done to them in most cases. Children are the most vulnerable. I am actually a liberal thinker who is for the death penalty...I know that isn't the norm. I guess I have a few thoughts on it. One...an eye for eye mentality. Simple but works for me. I have a hard time also giving people life in prison without parole...so then my tax payer money goes to giving them 3 meals a day, tv, books, time to work out, make friends, visits from family and friends and yes, time to rape again in the prison system. NO, I don't think prison is fun, it is punishment...but sometimes I think the death penalty is warrented. In this case, children brutally raped...to the point of needing surgery to repair them...don't you think that is vile enough of an act to warrant death? Yes, there is redemption and dare I use the word rehabilitation. I am not sure I believe in that. I have worked with domestic violence victims and I don't think their abusers were able to reform themselves...no 12 step program can just snap people out of that mentality that it is okay to beat the crap out of someone else.
So...I have to say I was disapointed today. I am not asking for America to become a cold place and think change isn't possible...but just saying that child rape cases across the board never would be justified in giving a death penalty...I think that was a bad call and makes me sad to think we don't value our youth more...the damage that is done in that violent act is horrible!
That is my rant for the night...