Corporate Crime with No Accountability

I heard a good interview on DemocracyNow! this morning and I would like to share the information I digested before 7am this morning. The thing that hit me was when Russell Mokhiber compared the attention focussed on looters during Katrina, who were looting food, clothing, water, and other things -- needed for survival or not -- with those who steal millions of dollars right under our government's nose. Double standard? No doubt!

Crime without Conviction: 34 Special Deals with Major Corporations
Corporate Crime Reporter

Featured Report:
Crime Without Conviction: The Rise of Deferred and Non Prosecution Agreements

Corporations that commit securities and accounting fraud can now expect to get sweetheart deals from the Justice Department, and they don't face public exposure for their misdeeds. We speak with Russell Mokhiber of Corporate Crime Reporter. [includes rush transcript]

DemocracyNow!
Crime without Conviction: U.S. Makes Deals With Corporate Criminals Instead of Prosecuting

Arnold Digraces Europe

One day you're here and now you're gone -- R.I.P. Tookie

It's over; it has been done. Early this morning, Stanley "Tookie" Williams breathe his last breath. I still find it hard to believe. In Europe, Schwartenzager's homeland, Austria, has denounce Arnold's decision.

U.S. execution: Arnold angers Europe

Stanley Tookie Williams Clemency Denied

Well, it seems time is swiftly running out for Tookie. The governator, being the Republican he is, denied Tookie's clemency which appears to be his last chance. Many people around the world have come out in order to spare his life. Despite their efforts, Tookie will be killed by a system that is far from just.

Which brings the question in my mind, "Does it really matter if you are rehabilitated while in prison?" Tookie's life and work is a true story of a rehabilitated individual who has turn his life around and is not a danger to our society. Moreover, Tookie has managed to reach out to young Crips and Bloods and got them to sign a peace treaty with one another in order to stop the violence. Tookie has also been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for his children's books advocating non-violence and peace.

So I must ask the question again -- Why are we killing Tookie? Revenge through another murder; which is supposedly a sin in the Christian Bible. So why do so many Christians support the death penalty vehemently in the US?

Our answer, my friends, could be in the fact that the US has had a long history of violence and the state of the nation is a pathological one. I have many experiences in, even within my own family, where there was a lack of sensitivy or awareness of other ethnicities and cultures. America, wake up out of dichotomy and dogma. As a class friend once reminded me, the world is not just black and white.