Sadly at the risk of being a "straight laced, didactic singaporean" I learnt FINALLY not to feel bad when people get the death penalty for heroine. Coz there are so many other issues in the world going on to deal with already...I really don't care about people who decide to smuggle drugs to make $...we should solve bigger problems and also respect dif. countries' laws...
Dave of coz says he doesn't agree...he says "Thou shalt not kill"...but I think POT is dif. from Heroine...and heroine has really ruined so many...I hate living with substances...waste of life!
The dilemna here is that the trafficker (of Vietnamese descent) was carrying the drugs to clear the debts of his drug-addicted twin brother. There's an additional soap drama element of how the mother escapes Vietnam in the 80s or 90s to deliver them in a refugee camp in Malaysia. So the death penalty now becomes even more cold-hearted in the face of this poor kid's circumstances.
Question is, would you still feel differently about hanging him now that you know his sad story, that he was not carrying it for his own profit, but carrying it for what is ultimately some huge drug cartel's profit.
26,000 doses of heroin. How many lives do that amount of drugs affect?
how about catching some BIG GUY behind all these... of course they'll never be caught dead carrying any drug. and then they go and hang these ppl at the end of the trafficking chain, who are totally replaceable. yes, u get some credit and hoorays from the public. but i'm not sure it helps improve anything.
Yeah I have mixed feelings for this issue. On one hand I feel sorry for this poor kid and the mother, on the other hand can you imagine how many lives would be affected if the herion had been successfully smuggled to other countries? Then again I do wish that the punishment would be less severe in the light that the kid did this to save his brother from debts. Anything is better than the death penalty. And do we have the rights to end one person's life just like that? Plus he can cooperate witht the police to nab the BIG GUY like what napa said. Sadly I don't think Spore is likely to back down. This is an unfortunate guy who has choosen the wrong path to help his brother.
Inevitable OutcomeepanthalassaDecember 1 2005, 15:05:50 UTC
I too feel sorry for the kid and his circumstances. However, lighter or subjective (whose opinion do we use?) punishment will compromise the no-tolerance policy we have for drug and arms dealers. A death penalty would only concern those who mean to offend. I have no major objection with capital punishment especially since I do not intend to commit a capital crime. He has been cooperating with the police since his capture and is completely remorseful but the reality of it is that he will definitely be hanged on December 2nd.
There must be other ways to pay off debt...or to help out your family... I am sure the story is now that he's remorseful...but would he be had he suceeded in making it past the customs border? Also, who knows which spins on the story are true or not anymore?
It's true the drug cartels should be the ones that have to "die"... sadly, I am glad Singapore is protected by its seemingly strict rules... I am not sure if its true there are less people on drugs in Singapore...(it looks like it)... but it sure is sad and ugly to see so many young lives ruined in N. America..and families... coz of this "happy" and highly addictive substance...
Away from HomeepanthalassaDecember 4 2005, 01:11:06 UTC
I dunno if you feel the same way but it took moving away from Singapore, for me to really appreciate Singapore. Despite the strict laws, high cost of living, and lack of freedom of speech, there are so much we get to enjoy and experience in Singapore under the protective arms of the government. True, we give up other experiences due to censorship and other regulations, but I would trade that anyday in exchange for the fact that every Singaporean has the opportunity to earn a living, enjoy heavily subsidized healthcare, education, and housing , not have to witness extreme poverty in our backyards.
Freedom of speech seems overrated if you have a social system that works. Its value seems to be in an environment where people have alot to complain about. :o)
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Dave of coz says he doesn't agree...he says "Thou shalt not kill"...but I think POT is dif. from Heroine...and heroine has really ruined so many...I hate living with substances...waste of life!
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Question is, would you still feel differently about hanging him now that you know his sad story, that he was not carrying it for his own profit, but carrying it for what is ultimately some huge drug cartel's profit.
26,000 doses of heroin. How many lives do that amount of drugs affect?
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Then again I do wish that the punishment would be less severe in the light that the kid did this to save his brother from debts. Anything is better than the death penalty. And do we have the rights to end one person's life just like that? Plus he can cooperate witht the police to nab the BIG GUY like what napa said. Sadly I don't think Spore is likely to back down. This is an unfortunate guy who has choosen the wrong path to help his brother.
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I am sure the story is now that he's remorseful...but would he be had he suceeded in making it past the customs border? Also, who knows which spins on the story are true or not anymore?
It's true the drug cartels should be the ones that have to "die"...
sadly, I am glad Singapore is protected by its seemingly strict rules...
I am not sure if its true there are less people on drugs in Singapore...(it looks like it)...
but it sure is sad and ugly to see so many young lives ruined in N. America..and families...
coz of this "happy" and highly addictive substance...
Reply
Freedom of speech seems overrated if you have a social system that works. Its value seems to be in an environment where people have alot to complain about. :o)
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