The assassination of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy.
The day President Kennedy was assassinated I was in my technical college class room. The Principal was shocked to hear this news on the radio and informed us about it in the class. During those days there were no TVs. I happened to be an avid regular listener of Voice of America and BBC. I escaped from the class room and rushed straight away to the American Library to confirm the news. Unfortunately it was correct news.
I immediately rushed home and switched on my radio. After some disturbances the BBC came on but was broadcasting some other news. It really annoyed me very much. For me the most important news of the day was Assassination of the President. It was short of heavy on my heart. I was still not able to believe it.
Ironically the Boston Strangler was arrested on the same day.
Then a magazine, Illustrated weakly of India, serialized the book “Death of a President”. I collected the entire series and made a book of mine binding it properly. It is still in my collection of classics and other books.
I read as many books, magazines that American Library, British Council were able to present to the readers. Since then two movies also came presenting the episode from different angles.
Till this day I am unable to understand and come to a conclusion why the assassination took place of a person like Kennedy. I continue to ponder over the matter from 1) political, 2) revenge, 3) and conspiracy point of view. For some time it got into my head, as mentioned in this blog, that Vice President Lyndon Baines Johnson was behind the conspiracy. But over time this aspect has got erased from my mind. However, I am unable to erase the entire matter from my mind and heart even now.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Crime, Criminals and Punishment
CRIMES, CRIMINALS AND PUNISHMENT
Some time ago I had received a research question “Do the tough laws prevent crimes”. I searched all the books on sociology, criminology, philosophy, criminal laws of various countries where tough laws are applied and other related books. I made huge amount of notes, jotted down innumerable points in my endeavor to find a suitable solution to this question. Frankly speaking I failed to help the researcher to my own satisfaction.
Capital punishment does not deter criminals from committing heinous crimes. Crimes committed in rage are different from one committed in a planned manner in cold blood. Here also if it is committed by a person trained in unarmed combat, use of armaments and done for someone else for money needs to be treated at another level than the other two.
There are some criminals who have leaning towards criminal activity since the juvenile age itself and may turn into a vicious one later in the age. This may be treated as mental aberration. Such people need psychological or psychiatric help. In their case it can be said confidently that they are not going to change. They will always be prone to crimes and dangerous to the society.
Then there are crimes against women of acid throwing, rape and disfiguring with blade. These three crimes must be treated at par with murder or intent to murder. It destroys the very existence of the victims and affects lifelong. If the victim can suffer throughout the life what is wrong in sending the perpetrators of such crimes to life imprisonment to repent for their crime rest of the life?
In the above cases of murder in rage and in cold blood the former may be awarded a life imprisonment but the latter deserves only the rare of rarest cases of death penalty.
If there is profusion in any particular type of crime say mercilessly snatching of handbags or earrings, necklaces from the helpless women. There is now increase in these types of crimes. Although they do not attract severe punishment but to check their profusion and completely obliterating, the punishment should be very harsh and well publicized in media.
During the World War – II, the German soldiers were scared of being posted in USSR. Death always stared at them starkly and could have taken place in the heart of desert as in the colder regions of USSR. The physical comfort during those days of thick of war was only momentary in a way and yet they preferred any place but USSR.
Same thing happened with the invading Army of Napoleon. Soldiers were scared of bitter cold of Russia and had already lost heart much before reaching there. The result was disastrous.
I have quoted these two examples to drive home one point that prisoners of heinous merciless crimes should be subjected to pass their days of incarceration in such harsher climatic regions and made to do more hard manual work to deter others committing similar crimes.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Crime, Criminals and Punishment
Since long it is established that the punishment should be in proportion to the crime. But what is the remedy when there is unchecked proliferation of crime. Nobody is safe. You may not only be robbed of your car along with laptop, credit or debit card everything en -route to or from the office or murdered when you resist. Day light robberies, bank heist, manslaughter, murder and use of arms, drugs smuggling and abuse, destroying and burning of running passenger train wagons, public transport buses arms smuggling abduction for ransom, hit and run are ever increasing.
Worst of all is the throwing of acids on women, raping and then burning them alive. If a girl spurns the advances of a loafer she gets acid thrown on her face and body.
Newly wedded young women are burnt alive by their husband and his parents as her parents are not in a position to pay any more dowries. In many cases they may be young mothers with a child of a year or two.
In fact crimes of every nature are increasing unchecked and society is tolerating them without compunction. In fact by tolerating, people are encouraging and emboldening the criminals. The attitude of the common people is to quietly witness the commissioning of the crime and unmindfully go their way. Nobody cares to intervene and protect the victim(s) or provide him at least the first aid medical help, call the ambulance or the police. People do not even bother to note down the registration number of the vehicle of the criminals.
It is the same story about the abuse of children. It is quite common for poor families to treat children as additional source of income. In the course of time as they grow up they tend to incline towards crime mainly as revenge against the society. In juvenile houses they learn more tricks of the trade from the other inmates rather than reformed.
Elderly senior citizens are the easiest victims. They are frequently murdered and robbed.
Similarly road rage incidents leading to violent end are becoming common. The temptation to use guns, whether licensed or country made is too strong. People have great urge to use it somewhere somehow without any botheration for the consequences and misery that it may bring to their dependents later. Mostly it takes place in the heat of the moment, under uncontrollable rage.
Nothing to mention about the hit and run cases. Not only the truck or bus drivers are involved in this but also the drunk brats of the filthily rich people in expensive cars. They are confident that they can easily buy the silence of the victims, their families and of the course the police. Ironically they succeed in most cases.
Robberies by fast motorcycle riding youngsters are being reported daily. They rudely snatch purses, handbags and necklaces of women irrespective their age. These motorbike riding boys also loot people carrying expensive items and cash.
Even withdrawing money from ATMs is becoming equally dangerous. These criminals force you to withdraw heavy amounts to the maximum limit. If you have more than one card they may force you to go to other ATMs also to withdraw money and quietly hand it over to them.
In a recent case a person’s car was jacked around 10.00p, m, and his all the other items were taken away. He was forced to go from one ATM to another. Then the car highjackers made him to wait till after mid night when the date changed and forced him to withdraw more cash from ATMs.
Day light robberies and bank heist is quite frequent. It is almost unchecked. Very frequently even policemen are assaulted.
Robberies in trains are becoming common. Government has not taken any positive steps to protect the train passengers. You never know whether you will reach your destination safe and sound physically and with your bag and baggage. Your compartment may be put to fire at any station by agitating mobs. The government has utterly failed in stopping these kinds of crimes. Why the innocent passengers be inconvenienced for grievances of the people? Why not be proactive and act before such kinds of ghastly incidents take place.
In gist people have completely lost faith in and fear of the law and judiciary. Corruption at every level and in every field is exceedingly common. Illegally earned black money has made many people filthily rich. Such people believe and do buy police, judges, higher authorities and finally the politicians of every hue and cry.
Crime flourishes under the shadow of law.
Criminals normally come from the families of Politicians, Police, Prostitutes and others in the similar profession, filthily rich black money hoarders, black coats (lawyers), and goondas in uniform.
A judge during the course of the argument of a case had commented that the police are goondas in uniform. They indulge and encourage crime.
Politicians do not have any morality and in many cases have criminal background. They get elected by using their money and muscle power. A free and fair election in many places is just a sham. Once in the state assembly or in the parliament they have a free license to commit any crime anywhere.
A Police Inspector in a state lamented that he has to salute and call sir to a leader whom he had arrested a number of times for heinous crimes and would have been happy to shoot him dead in an encuonter.
In the business of serving poverty stricken masses they have become millionaires. Such people enact laws which are interpreted in the courts to dispense justice!
Lawyers and journalists like politicians can not be touched by the police. Lawyers frequently indulge in antisocial activities without any check and go Scott free.
It is indeed monstrously vicious circle. The entire social system needs to be thoroughly cleaned and overhauled. It will require a good number of socially conscious, honest without lust for money leaders of national repute with determination and grit to clean the entire social system.
Keeping the unchecked profusion of all types of crime it is time that the notion of punishment in proportion is replaced with in proportion to proliferation of crimes, particularly in unmerciful crimes of acid throwing, rapes, and burning alive women
In cases like these there is no harm if the sharia type of Muslim law is applied to let the criminals have a taste of the agonies that their victims had undergone.
Rapes do not ruin the life of the victim only but also of their relatives, acquaintances and friends. It is the living death for the victims.
The above two crimes are much more heinous than manslaughter or murder. Such crimes must be treated as the rare of the rarest and the punishment should be accordingly given.
-X-
Since long it is established that the punishment should be in proportion to the crime. But what is the remedy when there is unchecked proliferation of crime. Nobody is safe. You may not only be robbed of your car along with laptop, credit or debit card everything en -route to or from the office or murdered when you resist. Day light robberies, bank heist, manslaughter, murder and use of arms, drugs smuggling and abuse, destroying and burning of running passenger train wagons, public transport buses arms smuggling abduction for ransom, hit and run are ever increasing.
Worst of all is the throwing of acids on women, raping and then burning them alive. If a girl spurns the advances of a loafer she gets acid thrown on her face and body.
Newly wedded young women are burnt alive by their husband and his parents as her parents are not in a position to pay any more dowries. In many cases they may be young mothers with a child of a year or two.
In fact crimes of every nature are increasing unchecked and society is tolerating them without compunction. In fact by tolerating, people are encouraging and emboldening the criminals. The attitude of the common people is to quietly witness the commissioning of the crime and unmindfully go their way. Nobody cares to intervene and protect the victim(s) or provide him at least the first aid medical help, call the ambulance or the police. People do not even bother to note down the registration number of the vehicle of the criminals.
It is the same story about the abuse of children. It is quite common for poor families to treat children as additional source of income. In the course of time as they grow up they tend to incline towards crime mainly as revenge against the society. In juvenile houses they learn more tricks of the trade from the other inmates rather than reformed.
Elderly senior citizens are the easiest victims. They are frequently murdered and robbed.
Similarly road rage incidents leading to violent end are becoming common. The temptation to use guns, whether licensed or country made is too strong. People have great urge to use it somewhere somehow without any botheration for the consequences and misery that it may bring to their dependents later. Mostly it takes place in the heat of the moment, under uncontrollable rage.
Nothing to mention about the hit and run cases. Not only the truck or bus drivers are involved in this but also the drunk brats of the filthily rich people in expensive cars. They are confident that they can easily buy the silence of the victims, their families and of the course the police. Ironically they succeed in most cases.
Robberies by fast motorcycle riding youngsters are being reported daily. They rudely snatch purses, handbags and necklaces of women irrespective their age. These motorbike riding boys also loot people carrying expensive items and cash.
Even withdrawing money from ATMs is becoming equally dangerous. These criminals force you to withdraw heavy amounts to the maximum limit. If you have more than one card they may force you to go to other ATMs also to withdraw money and quietly hand it over to them.
In a recent case a person’s car was jacked around 10.00p, m, and his all the other items were taken away. He was forced to go from one ATM to another. Then the car highjackers made him to wait till after mid night when the date changed and forced him to withdraw more cash from ATMs.
Day light robberies and bank heist is quite frequent. It is almost unchecked. Very frequently even policemen are assaulted.
Robberies in trains are becoming common. Government has not taken any positive steps to protect the train passengers. You never know whether you will reach your destination safe and sound physically and with your bag and baggage. Your compartment may be put to fire at any station by agitating mobs. The government has utterly failed in stopping these kinds of crimes. Why the innocent passengers be inconvenienced for grievances of the people? Why not be proactive and act before such kinds of ghastly incidents take place.
In gist people have completely lost faith in and fear of the law and judiciary. Corruption at every level and in every field is exceedingly common. Illegally earned black money has made many people filthily rich. Such people believe and do buy police, judges, higher authorities and finally the politicians of every hue and cry.
Crime flourishes under the shadow of law.
Criminals normally come from the families of Politicians, Police, Prostitutes and others in the similar profession, filthily rich black money hoarders, black coats (lawyers), and goondas in uniform.
A judge during the course of the argument of a case had commented that the police are goondas in uniform. They indulge and encourage crime.
Politicians do not have any morality and in many cases have criminal background. They get elected by using their money and muscle power. A free and fair election in many places is just a sham. Once in the state assembly or in the parliament they have a free license to commit any crime anywhere.
A Police Inspector in a state lamented that he has to salute and call sir to a leader whom he had arrested a number of times for heinous crimes and would have been happy to shoot him dead in an encuonter.
In the business of serving poverty stricken masses they have become millionaires. Such people enact laws which are interpreted in the courts to dispense justice!
Lawyers and journalists like politicians can not be touched by the police. Lawyers frequently indulge in antisocial activities without any check and go Scott free.
It is indeed monstrously vicious circle. The entire social system needs to be thoroughly cleaned and overhauled. It will require a good number of socially conscious, honest without lust for money leaders of national repute with determination and grit to clean the entire social system.
Keeping the unchecked profusion of all types of crime it is time that the notion of punishment in proportion is replaced with in proportion to proliferation of crimes, particularly in unmerciful crimes of acid throwing, rapes, and burning alive women
In cases like these there is no harm if the sharia type of Muslim law is applied to let the criminals have a taste of the agonies that their victims had undergone.
Rapes do not ruin the life of the victim only but also of their relatives, acquaintances and friends. It is the living death for the victims.
The above two crimes are much more heinous than manslaughter or murder. Such crimes must be treated as the rare of the rarest and the punishment should be accordingly given.
-X-
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