This could've been anyone one here...

[kerryg]

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” - Edmund Burke.

Curious choice of quote though. Are you saying that NOT smuggling 400g of heroin would be analogous to "a good man doing nothing"? Or, turn it around: a good man would smuggle heroin in the same circumstances as this condemned fellow? I struggle a bit with that analogy.

[inlinefour]

I have absolutely NO simpathy what so ever for the idiot. I work with people most days that drugs have at least partially ruined their lives. One more down, pleanty to go...

[scumdog]

The issue here, surely, is the penalty. I believe that no person has the right to kill another, including as "punishment" for murder or other crimes involving the death of others.

Hopefully that also includes those that sell drugs knowing that a certain amount of their 'clients' will die from those drugs - or possibly kill some other person to obtain the drugs and/or money to buy said drugs???

The 'need' to kill the criminals would be severely reduced if certian individuals decided societies rules did not apply to them.
I guess those with a lemmings self preservation intincts tend to do things that the rest of us know will result in our lives being terminated - but still act surprised when it is THEIR life on the line?
I guess the types above are the ones that stuck forks in the three-pin power socket when younger....

No problem with him being allowed to live and stay in prison IF his family (his druggie brother?) paid for his existence for the 20 odd years he would be in prison. (See, I have a heart after all!)

[scumdog]

Yep, he was trying to help his twin, I think it was a nobel act but he could have found a legit means.

'Helping his twin' is stretched a bit when the value of the drug far exceeded the sum owed by his brother imho, but hey, what do I know??.

[ManDownUnder]

'Helping his twin' is stretched a bit when the value of the drug far exceeded the sum owed by his brother imho, but hey, what do I know??.

Yeah but... if I did something like that I'd have no idea what the shit is worth anyway. I'd probably carry too much to make sure I had enough, but little enough that I'd "get away with it".

Who knows, ignorance and/or stupidity hgave come into play on this one in a number of dimensions

[scumdog]

Yeah but... if I did something like that I'd have no idea what the shit is worth anyway. I'd probably carry too much to make sure I had enough, but little enough that I'd "get away with it".

Who knows, ignorance and/or stupidity hgave come into play on this one in a number of dimensions

And so the gene pool is about to be improved! , see there IS a silver lining in every cloud!

[WRT]

Curious choice of quote though. Are you saying that NOT smuggling 400g of heroin would be analogous to "a good man doing nothing"? Or, turn it around: a good man would smuggle heroin in the same circumstances as this condemned fellow? I struggle a bit with that analogy.

The quote was following up on my second paragraph, rather than the first. More aimed at the whole drug trade/culture in general, rather than this one incident.

However, you could apply it to this scenario as well, if you were on the side of the condemned man. He saw his brother being tormented by an evil, and rather than sit by and do nothing, he attempted (in a very, very misguided way) to help. A detached and rational man (or woman) would have been able to see that his actions were NOT going to help, but unfortunately he thought it would. Silly him, he has paid the price for his foolishness.

[MacD]

I'm actually quite disheartened that most people who've responded can't see how he got there. I'm not apologising for him, I'm not supporting him, I'm not denying that he was stupid (as I've said over, and over, and over), I'm not denying that he "earned" his sentence, barbarous as it is - can you not see how his plight would have landed him there? Are you all so non-self aware that you can't see that smuggling drugs to Singapore, or through Singapore, is driven by the same testosterone and "immortality" urge that drives all young men to risk taking? He was 22 and bullet-proof. It wasn't going to happen to him, and he could fix all his family problems in one go.

Social services? You must be joking. Your twin owes the Triads money for drugs. I'll go tell the cops then shall I? Think about how you would react when a family member's life is threatened, by a criminal organisation with no scruples. How the hell do you respond rationally? Can you not see how stupid decision after stupid decision would pile up in that situation?

I understand exactly what you are trying to say and agree. People get themselves caught up in all sorts of situations from which they fail to see any rational escape. This case happens to involve drugs and Singapore. If the death penalty actually worked as a deterrent why did he try to smuggle drugs in? Why do people still commit murder in the USA? Because these acts are not rational and the death penalty is not a deterrent, it is really just state-sanctioned revenge (insert appropriate justification here -"eye for eye" etc).

I also find it interesting how many people on this site are willing to accept the "drugs are bad" argument but reject the "speeding is bad" argument, both of which are neither quite as black and white as suggested by the slogans. If you are looking for a drug that has a significant negative effect on society look no further than alcohol. Yet I intend to go to the pub tonight...

[vifferman]

Reading all these replies, I'm glad I didn't proffer an opinion. The issue's too complex, too hard for me.

[scumdog]

Reading all these replies, I'm glad I didn't proffer an opinion. The issue's too complex, too hard for me.

Don't let that get you down, just post any old shit you want! (I'm sure half the other buggers on this site do that most of the time!)

Besides, regardless of you opinion the bugger's still dead.

[emaN]

Just wondering how you would feel if these Drug's where to be put into one of your own Kid's ARM & then have them Die !! Fuck the Munter He knew now he Pay's with His Life !! not the Poor people that where going to Shoot it up ! Let him Die Quickly .

"not the poor people that were going to shoot it up"

he was supposedly trying to 'help out' one of those 'poor people'. if his story is to be believed, he wasn't gonna hand it over to his bro and tell him to knock hisself out - the monies 'earned' were to get his bro outta trouble.
yeh, silly him for couriering (sp?) it thru a Death Penalty country...he knew the consequences, he's paid the price.

The State of Singapore, however, has a long way to go; stupidly high fines for spitting? fines for dropping a wrapper?
I saw the last few minutes of an item on late night news re a local doctor who's "arms and tongue are tied", and is very unpopular with the State for his views on freedom of speech and all... An unhealthy environment to live in, for sure!

I think i'm with Jim2 on this one..

[scumdog]

"
The State of Singapore, however, has a long way to go; stupidly high fines for spitting? fines for dropping a wrapper?
I saw the last few minutes of an item on late night news re a local doctor who's "arms and tongue are tied", and is very unpopular with the State for his views on freedom of speech and all... An unhealthy environment to live in, for sure!

I think i'm with Jim2 on this one..

The State of New Zealand in 2083????????
The way this present Nanny gummint is going it's goodbye personal freedom so's we can all 'live' in a 'safe' environment!!!

[Yokai]

Don't let that get you down, just post any old shit you want! (I'm sure half the other buggers on this site do that most of the time!)

Aaarrgghhhh! My secret's out - I'm meeeeelllllltttttttttiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnnnggggg!

[James Deuce]

Just to clarify, here is no need to apologise (inlinefour) for not expressing sympathy. This post was about recognising the pathos of the situation, and at no point have I made a judgement on what he did, the legal process in Singapore, or the death penalty, nor have I required that anyon else do so.

I just wanted to try and illustrate that it is all more complex than our more vengeful instincts tell us it should be, and that we don't challenge our assumptions often or deeply enough.

[Yokai]

vengeful instincts

Don't think that I've heard it put quite so succinctly. Apparently, according to research that was spouted in a huge protest against Texas' capital punishment policy, such a policy is not about punishing or deterring criminals but is about having a community see that "justice" has been done...