There's a phrase that has been brought up in our internal discussions in the past - gingerly and with some discomfort - that originated with our webmaster. The phrase is "terminal stupidity", a pairing of words that has a sad and unusual validity for what's been happening over the last year in regards to Nebraska's death penalty.
In case you've missed the series of events we've linked to this year, the short version goes something like this: The State of Nebraska tried to purchase - on the cheap - the necessary chemicals to enact the state's current death penalty, beginning back in January. In April, the foreign company that Nebraska made the agreement with changed their minds, and decided they would not sell sodium thiopental for use in executions any more. In May, the Nebraska Supreme Court got involved, along with the U.S. DEA - who found out the State of Nebraska didn't have a legitimate license to import sodium thiopental.
This fall, the State of Nebraska got the proper license and announced they'd made a new agreement to purchase the drug from a company in Switzerland. However, the company recently discovered the State of Nebraska tried to obtain the drug deceitfully - so they are now demanding its return. Now the state of Nebraska is being dragged before the State Supreme Court - again - and Jon Bruning, Nebraska's Attorney General, is being asked to recuse himself from the case because of the state's previous reckless behavior on this issue.
In short, the state of Nebraska has not taken seriously its responsibility in using the death penalty - a concept we find HIGHLY offensive.
We do not take the topic of ending a life early - including through the use of the death penalty - as a frivolous or lightweight topic. That's why we even have difficulty with the phrase, "terminal stupidity".
As our staffer has defined it, "terminal stupidity" is a combination of three factors: lack of knowledge, lack of concern, and lack of wisdom. It's the, "I don't know, I don't care, and I don't have to care" combination that can endanger the lives of individuals or those around them.
Sadly, in this case, the phrase oddly fits.
The chain of lies and malfeasance on the death penalty in Nebraska this year has been well documented, both by Nebraska media organizations like the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal Star, as well as national and international news organizations, like the Washington Post, and the International Business Times.
The basic facts of the matter are these: the death penalty should NEVER be used lightly. The chances that any government may kill an innocent person are well-known - and are the primary reason why many other countries around the world have banned the death penalty.
In the case of Nebraska, it is obvious that the state not only mishandled its responsibilities once, but it fumbled its authority at least twice this year. As the person holding the top legal responsibility in Nebraska for carrying out legal orders of the state, Attorney General Bruning failed - spectacularly - in using his authority. So did Governor Heineman, as well as officials in the Nebraska Department of Corrections.
That the state of Nebraska now wants to keep the illegally obtained sodium thiopental - and use it to kill those sentenced to death under Nebraska law - only serves to make the situation worse.
Those who have created this completely inexcusable chain of failures have jabbed every Nebraskan - and Americans in general - in the backside with their uneducated, ignorant, and thoughtless behavior. Frankly, they have no right to take a life with their ill-gotten gains.
We, however, have the right to call them what they have proven themselves to be, in this case: terminally stupid.
We only hope that no one dies as a result of their total disrespect for ethics and the law.
