Hangman
High hopes for the hangman
you will go far and
fulfill your many dreams
but the people will not
forget what you have done
and the pain you have caused.
Comments
I like this one Jon, it leaves me; hanging.
Kindness is a virtue. But the kind are often done wrong... Beautiful Jon! And fair.?
It's my view that the intent of capital punishment was to signal to the
evil doer what awaited him/her if guilty of the criminal taking of another's life. The word "awful" translates as inspiring awe and dread. Like the confessional, there was a public interest in being
witnesses to the determination of
lofty authority to act on behalf of us all, here removing the resort by
individuals of taking the law into their own hands - as has been
witnessed in places without the omnipotent black cap protection of "the law". How ironic that now we consider ourselves more
civilised and humane that the rate of death from violent crime is
going through the roof. To borrow a certain "yeuky" saying heard
so frequently these days: lessons must be learnt.
I guess we all have a hang man inside. I think my own hang man is in my complacency, both on personal and societal levels.
Hi Ray, thanks for the comments.
For me this is about people doing things that are in their own interest, furthering themselves without thought for others. Stepping on other people's toes. No thought for others.
Then, how do we, as the 'others' deal with that. Do we forgive? Do we forget? Do we do both? Lots of paradoxes, contradictions in our lives. How do we live with them, learn to live with them.
I'm intrigued Jon. My first thought is that a Hangman is as human as the rest of us, it was always a duty carried out on behalf of the state. In the days of public executions, masks were worn to conceal the identity. No shortage of spectators though in early days. I feel like I'm beefing out your poem, but it made me think.
Of course, there would be many who would gladly relish the return of capital punishment here. Perhaps Trump could do a deal with the government after brexit.
Ray
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Jon Stainsby
Tue 26th Mar 2019 09:15
Thanks all for your comments.