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Since when in America do we execute people for wanting to commit murder? Has Thought Crime now been written into law? As 911 widow Mindy Kleinberg so clearly put it: Moussaoui is not my proxy. Moussaoui is more like one of those wannabe police officers, getting the gear, wearing the hat, showing up at investigations in public places, trying to look like an officer. Moussaoui was an embarrassment to al-Qaeda; they rejected him as an operative and the closest he will come to being accepted by al-Qaeda, will be his execution by this government. We are so stung by 911 that we are trampling the principles upon which this country was founded and has flourished. And for what? to execute a man who was the only one our government could capture? or would dare prosecute to the maximum? I still want to know why our ground troops were held back from pursuing Osama, when he was holed up at Tora Bora. This scapegoating of Moussaoui feels like just one more contrived distraction. We can do better. We can, for example, stand by our principles. Will the world be a better place once Moussaoui is executed? Well, yes, insofar as the sum total of unhappiness in the world will be lessened, even if only because it is clear that Moussaoui is a deeply unhappy human being. Will the intolerable grief and rage of some surviving family members be appeased by his death? Sure, but that is not what a court of law is mandated to do. Do I think that such men should be prevented from harming others? Absolutely. And I admit with some shame to a bloodthirsty desire in me for the death of all mad dogs. But: Moussaoui is not responsible, and executing him will just be another example of this country betraying her great values out of fear and fury. Let’s please not give this mad dog what he wants more than anything: martyrdom. We can do better!
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