Madam, I'm Saddam

The mindless brouhaha of the usual suspects deploring Saddam's recent execution doesn't merit our attention. For practicing RCs, however, the sentiments of the Vatican (as if it were a person; don't kill me Friedrich) do.

Bearing that in mind, Robert Miller does a good job explaining why the death penalty, and criticism of it, is not the same as criticizing, say, abortion. A clip:

Fr. Frederico Lombardi, S.J., the director of the Vatican Press Office, has commented on the execution this past weekend of Saddam Hussein for crimes against humanity. An execution, Fr. Lombardi says, “is always tragic news” and a “reason for sadness, even if it is about a person who has been guilty of grave crimes.” That’s true, of course, though somewhat banal: It’s likewise tragic news and a reason for sadness, though less so, that a man who held up a liquor store is serving three to five in the state penitentiary. Fr. Lombardi insists on going further, however. “To kill the guilty one,” he insists, “is not the way to rebuild justice and to reconcile society. The risk also exists that, on the contrary, the spirit of vengeance will be fueled and new violence be sown.”

This latter assertion is far from banal. In fact, it’s highly controversial. Without necessarily disagreeing with the assertion, I want to call attention to its character. The claim that executing Hussein will likely lead to more violence in Iraq than otherwise would be the case is, obviously, not a teaching of the Catholic Church on faith or morals. It is, rather, an empirical claim about contingent matters of fact, about what policies are likely to have what consequences in the real world. It’s the same kind of claim, from an epistemological point of view, as a statement from the Federal Open Market Committee that increasing the federal funds rate is not necessary to address inflation risks, or a statement from the New York City police commissioner that arresting turnstile jumpers will reduce gun violence on the subways.

Of course, that clip tells you very little about the substance of the argument (at least that was the case with me), but hopefully it will stimulate you enough to read the fascinating remainder, which is what I am doing right...about...NOW.