New Media

Found this under the hood of my car.

Oh, wait. It’s just Saad Khalid, one of the Toronto 18 terrorism conspirators. His line reported in the Globe and Mail this week was outstanding:

“I am not a lunatic who is hell bent on destruction of Western civilization.”

Of course you weren’t, Mr. Khalid. Your little group’s alleged targets were much more modest than all of Western civilization:

The group was allegedly preparing for a large-scale terrorist attack in southern Ontario, which included detonating truck bombs at least two locations in Southern Ontario and opening fire in a crowded area. Police alleged they also made plans to storm various buildings such as the Canadian Broadcasting Centre and the Canadian Parliament building, and take hostages. According to one of the suspect’s lawyers, they have been accused of planning to “behead the Prime Minister”, Stephen Harper, and other leaders.

Law enforcement authorities have identified other specific targets, including the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and the Parliamentary Buildings’ Peace Tower.

Not a lunatic? Suit yourself.

Hanging is too good for parasites who commit these kinds of crimes:

Philip Garrido, 58, a convicted rapist and the suspected father of her children, and his wife, Nancy, 55, are being held by police on suspicion of kidnapping to commit rape. Bail has been set at $1 million (£600,000).

Police said that Ms Dugard had spent the past 18 years as a virtual slave, sheltered from the outside world in a hidden compound behind a grey, one-storey house in the semi-rural town of Antioch. Police described the compound as a “backyard within a backyard”, accessible only through a series of outhouses and tarpaulins.

This is far from the first time we’ve heard of these kinds of horrific crimes carried out over years and even decades. There was the case of the Austrian “dungeon dad” Josef Fritzl. Every so often, a monster is revealed whose crimes are so atrocious and extensive that our system of justice simply cannot deliver a level of justice commensurate with their deeds.

When someone is proven guilty of such irredeemable evil and cannot possibly be trusted to live in society, what is the point of keeping them around in prison? For such cases, isn’t capital punishment appropriate?