realthog

I've just been writing an e-mail to Governor Perdue of Georgia. Georgia, you'll recall, is the state that's planning to put to death a prisoner called Troy Davis for a murder that no one any longer believes he committed. You can find a video about the case here, as well as a blank form in case you, too, would like to contact Mr Perdue.

This is the e-mail I sent to Georgia's governor:

Dear Governor Perdue

If you permit the execution of Troy Davis to go ahead on the grounds that killing him is legally permissible and easier than stirring a finger, you (and your staff) will be guilty of murder.

Not, perhaps, in strictly legalistic terms, but in every ethical sense.

You will have to live with the taint of "murderer" attached to your name for the rest of your life.

And then your Maker will pronounce it too.

So why not give your conscience a break, spare your family the disgrace of having to live with a murderer, and pardon this innocent man?

Sincerely --

Paul Barnett

You may be asking why the case hasn't featured much, if at all, in your newspaper or TV news (although some of the foreign newspapers are carrying the story). Well, Mr Davis is black and poor. Otherwise, I'm convinced, there'd be blanket coverage in the news media and consequently national outrage on a deafening scale.