"Both the crime and the punishment are barbaric."
If the crime and the punishment were BOTH barbaric, then the punishment fits the crime. Neither cruel, nor unusual, given the circumstances.
This creature ruthlessly murdered 21 innocent young children. I don't think having a family member of one of the children stab him is too far - sorry. His punishment is not barbaric in my eyes.
Reads like something out of Dante's "Inferno", doesn't it?
A small glimpse into the pit of hell.
Savages? Maybe. On the other hand, public execution tends to have more impact on society when it isn't prettied up by politicians. On the other hand, there is the tendancy to make a show of it. Balancing justice and mercy can't be easy; but, if justice is to be served, the statement made in carrying it out should be impactful, not diminished by shutting the public out. What they did empowered citizens to act out frustrations that might not otherwise be dealt with. The concept of justice here has been largely neutered with psychobabble to the point where the people have become dumb sheep.
One thing's for sure, if you can get the NY Times to run this story for two weeks, the Libs will be demanding that Bush invade Iran LOL.