2008 Woodie Awards
Rebels of the Scared Heart
by Seth Reese
Issue date: 1/8/07 Section: Opinion
It was like a scene from a western. At the break of dawn, Saturday the
30 of December, Saddam Hussein was led to the gallows to face the
penalty of a tyrannous life.
In spite of what many seem to believe, Hussein was a human being, and as
such, had rights. One right was to a death with dignity, a right he was
denied. Saddam was lynched by an angry mob. To be sure, he was not the
pinnacle of human decency, but this gives no one the right to treat a
human being in an inhuman manner.
In his essay "Revenge is Sour," George Orwell said, "Properly speaking,
there is no such thing as revenge. Revenge is an act which you want to
commit when you are powerless and because you are powerless: as soon
as the sense of impotence is removed, the desire evaporates also."
Impotence led us (humanity) to treat Saddam as an animal. Impotence
led us to celebrate his death. Impotence led us to post his execution
on as many sites as possible. Humanity cannot afford to treat life so
cheaply. When we walked the slippery slope of indifference (or, even
more scary, joy) to death, we cheapen the suffering that surrounds us.
We lose sight of our potential as sentient beings. And the execution of anyone, even a cruel dictator, will have repercussions--personal and political, local and global. We have to be willing to take responsibility for state-sponsored death, but the consequences--cynicism and violence--might end up being too much for the human race to bear.
30 of December, Saddam Hussein was led to the gallows to face the
penalty of a tyrannous life.
In spite of what many seem to believe, Hussein was a human being, and as
such, had rights. One right was to a death with dignity, a right he was
denied. Saddam was lynched by an angry mob. To be sure, he was not the
pinnacle of human decency, but this gives no one the right to treat a
human being in an inhuman manner.
In his essay "Revenge is Sour," George Orwell said, "Properly speaking,
there is no such thing as revenge. Revenge is an act which you want to
commit when you are powerless and because you are powerless: as soon
as the sense of impotence is removed, the desire evaporates also."
Impotence led us (humanity) to treat Saddam as an animal. Impotence
led us to celebrate his death. Impotence led us to post his execution
on as many sites as possible. Humanity cannot afford to treat life so
cheaply. When we walked the slippery slope of indifference (or, even
more scary, joy) to death, we cheapen the suffering that surrounds us.
We lose sight of our potential as sentient beings. And the execution of anyone, even a cruel dictator, will have repercussions--personal and political, local and global. We have to be willing to take responsibility for state-sponsored death, but the consequences--cynicism and violence--might end up being too much for the human race to bear.
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