Smart Kidnapper Brian David Mitchell Deserves What He's Got Coming???

I'm glad that Elizabeth Smart's kidnapper, rapist, and abuser, Brian David Mitchell, is going to prison for a long time. But to hear other people say that he deserves the same sort of abuse when he gets to federal prison is very disturbing.
Yesterday at the federal courthouse in Salt Lake City, Brian David Mitchell was sentenced to life in prison for his heinous crimes against Elizabeth Smart. Following the sentencing, Smart said

Today is the ending of a very long chapter and the beginning of a very beautiful chapter for me...I want you [Mitchell] to know that I have a wonderful life now. No matter what you do, you will never affect me again. You took away nine months of my life that can never be returned. But I know that in this life or the next, you will be held responsible for what you have done and I hope you're ready for that when it comes.

If only other Utahns could have handled the sentencing with as much grace and aplomb as the victim.

Maybe it's a result of so many of us having become jaded in the face of torture of enemy combatants, I don't know. But I was very disturbed yesterday to hear caller after caller on the Rod Arquette show in Salt Lake City opine--sometimes with glee, other times with faux righteous indignation--that Mitchell should be "...held responsible for what [he has] done..." by deserving the same kind of abuse--that they expect he has coming--in maximum security federal prison.

'The kinds of people that other inmates hate worst', said one caller, 'are rapists and pedophiles. So I can imagine that when Mitchell gets there, there are gonna be a lot of other prisoners wanting to get a piece of him. And I think that's good.'

Subsequent callers agreed that he deserves what he's got coming--and then they described quite graphically how they hoped he would be beaten, tortured, and raped, so that he could feel the pain of what he did to Elizabeth Smart.

Elizabeth Smart doesn't want that. To be sure, she was very happy that her abuser would be behind bars for the rest of his life. I agree that he deserves to be behind bars. She deserves to be happy. But Elizabeth didn't express any glee or indignation similar to the radio show callers in expecting Mitchell to 'get what he deserved' in prison.

Elizabeth Smart is not that cruel. No one should be.

Red Clothing and Resurrection: Jesus Christ's Second Coming

The scriptures teach that when Christ comes again to the earth, that he will be wearing red apparel. Why red ? They also teach that at Christ's coming, many of the dead will become resurrected. Will this only include members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Not by a long shot, no matter what some Mormon might tell you.

School Vouchers: "The Bramble Memo"

$429 million? What? Where? The legislative fiscal analyst for the State of Utah calculated the costs to the public schools over the next 13 years if school vouchers are implemented. It said the costs would be $5.5M in the first year, and $71M in the 13th year. Suddenly, the number I have started seeing thrown around was $429 million, the total costs for vouchers over 13 years. Where did that number come from? Enter the mysterious "Bramble Memo". In the past few days several of us (Jeremy, Utah Taxpayer, Craig, Sara, Urban Koda, Jesse, and me) have (sometimes?) enjoyed a lively discussion about school vouchers in Utah . Jeremy clarified to me the costs of the venture by linking to a copy of the Utah Legislative Fiscal Analyst's Impartial Analysis (LFA) of the costs of Vouchers , found on "The Senate Site". In my previous voucher article, I quoted some of Lavar Webb's article from last Sunday's Deseret News, wherein he stated that those total costs ...

What's Your Reaction to California's Decision on Same-Sex Marriage?

Yesterday a "Republican-dominated" California Supreme Court struck down state laws against same-sex marriages. The LDS Church issued a press release, calling the decision "unfortunate". I agree, but not for reasons you might think. Did the California Court make the right decision? Update 5/17/2008 : California decision does not affect prohibitions against polygamy and marriage of close relatives. Why not? Government should not sanction same-sex marriages for the same reason that it should not sanction heterosexual adultery--such activities tend to be destructive to the family as the fundamental unit of society. Before you get too far into reading into my words, let me echo and agree with something that Madeleine Albright wrote in her recent book, The Mighty & The Almighty (one of the better books that I have read in a long time): I oppose discrimination against gays and lesbians and am convinced that heterosexual adultery is a greater danger to the institu...

Dave P.5/27/2011 06:44:00 AM
It's the same "Eye for an eye!" mentality that we saw over the killing of Osama Bin Laden. Americans today, even members of the church, want to revert back to the law of Moses rather than live by the principles taught by Christ.

One commenter over at the Trib mentioned how Ed Smart looked like he still wants pure, undiluted revenge, and how that kind of attitude will forever chip away at him unless he can obtain the spirit of forgiveness. The same can apply to the country as a whole if we continue to let the attitude of the "natural man" eat away at our principles.
Conor Mccartney6/20/2011 11:00:00 PM
It is an eye for an eye mentality. But in part, we don't want him just to go to prison to be removed from society we also want him to suffer in prison. He will suffer because prison is a bad place, and some people think that is the just rewards for being a terrible person (kidnapping and torturing someone)
Anonymous7/21/2013 01:57:00 PM
@Dave P. You wrote, "One commenter over at the Trib mentioned how Ed Smart looked like he still wants pure, undiluted revenge, and how that kind of attitude will forever chip away at him unless he can obtain the spirit of forgiveness. The same can apply to the country as a whole if we continue to let the attitude of the "natural man" eat away at our principles."

Just because that is someone's comment doesn't mean it's true. I/You/Commenter haven't anyway of knowing how Ed Smart feels. He looked like he still wants - looks don't mean anything - and if I were a father sitting in court hearing again all the things that happened to my daughter, I may look the same, but so what; I also do not think it is for you or anyone else to assume that he should forgive anyone. What if it happened to someone you loved? Would forgiveness be that easy to offer up? I say it wouldn't, but even I don't know.

Just because some idiots call a radio show and say stupid things, they don't speak for everyone and neither do you. The way I feel is that I don't care what happens to this waste of a life. I don't care if he lives a happy life in prison or if he is beaten and raped; I wouldn't wish it on him, but this is the his life now and what happens will happen.

Still, to think I know anyone's heart - like you and the supposed commentator seem to know - is pathetic. I don't know your heart and I don't know the heart of the country as a whole, but you appear to be a lucky man because you can know the heart of the country...lucky you.

Simple Utah Mormon Politics

Search This Blog