Death of a Dictator

Photo cred: I copied this image from here: http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/10/20/photo_qaddafis_end

I'm glad this guy isn't around anymore. But I'm not a fan of how people praise the death of another human. It's sick and wrong. I don't care how much damage to humanity he is responsible for....as fellow humans, I just don't feel okay about it. And what I'm about to say is probably really extreme and it's going to sound crazy. But I'm just thinking and writing my train of thought as it comes. So, there's an LDS scripture that states "The worth of souls is great in the sight of God." My petty human emotions can't comprehend or wrap my head around how the former Libyan dictator can ever be considered "great in the sight of God." But he is a soul, sooo.....I'm not even sure how to finish that sentence because I'm still trying to understand how I feel. But... wherever that atrocious pig ends up in the after life, I don't know. And to feel relief that he's not around to commit horrific crimes....obviously that's natural. But it just seems irreverent to party about it. It makes me a little queasy. Kind of like the picture I included. There is just nothing celebratory about that image. 

On another note, I'm not a fan of death without trial. That's a slippery slope to play with. The Libyans should have subjected him to a trial. Obama should have subjected Anwar al-Awlaki to a trial. It's not like either of those guys would have been let off the hook by a sympathetic jury. I mean come on, get real here. Where is our judicial system? I get that Awlaki was a combatant against the U.S. But I don't freaking care. He was still a U.S. citizen, and I'd hate to think that the executive branch of the "free" country in which I live can rationalize its way into taking me out via drone strike. Yes, I heard how crazy I sound. And no I don't think we'll ever actually get that far off track. That's just crazy conspiracy theory. But at one point in time killing an American citizen wasn't okay. If it's okay now based on such and such, it's not that hard to ease up those standards over time. Hence why it's a slippery slope. I do have faith in our system, but I'm losing it. Real fast.

I've heard excellent arguments both defending and refuting what I just said. So my opinions on the matter really aren't set in stone. I'm working that out still. But for now, this is what is going through my head. And I'm sorry for how incoherent I sound. I really am just rambling thoughts as they surface.....