This piece is a little out of the norm for me, but I think it raises some interesting questions in light of the current climate.
Apparently, if nothing changes between now and then, in early December an ex-American soldier is to be executed by firing squad. His crime was to murder a bunch of people – fellow soldiers mostly – on the army base in which he was stationed called Fort Hood.
The time and location of the execution are to be precisely the time and location he committed the crime.
Now, personally I think this is barbaric enough. Sure, he killed people and that is reprehensible, but does that mean more should be killed – ie him – as a consequence? I am of the opinion this is a pointless exercise, but I understand your view may differ.
However, what makes this particular punishment different, is that the US Secretary of Defence, sorry Secretary of “War”, has organised for the execution to be live streamed “to show people these actions have consequences”.
And the United States’ moronic President has agreed to it.
Firstly, I am not sure what they hope to achieve by doing this and secondly, I question the legality of it, not just in Australia but anywhere. Isn’t this the use of a carriage system to transmit sights and sounds that simply should not be transmitted? That is, it’ would be illegal to stream it? If a murder was live streamed, all hell would break loose, and this is precisely what this will be.
Next, how do we stop vulnerable people seeing it, because they will. If it is allowed to go ahead, it will be copied and replayed a million times over. We have seen it before with other atrocities committed by ISIS for example, and even the Bondi massacre went close. Who can forget the madman in New Zealand who live streamed himself shooting up a mosque?
Not to mention Pete Hegseth gleefully showing videos of speed boats being blown to Kingdon come with no apparent proof of anything.
There are reports that our Prime Minister is trying to find a way to stop the streaming of the vision to Australia (while people are at the same time screaming “censorship”) and I think this is the right thing to do myself. But there is an interesting side to all of this, and that is just which streaming company is actually going to host it?
One media organisation in the US queried the major companies including Meta, YouTube, Twitch and TikTok and not one would give a reply to that question. Digging a little deeper showed their own terms and conditions preclude the playing of such material on their services.
Further investigation showed that there is no legal obligation to host the broadcast, Government based or not.
So, in the end, and I hope so, it all may turn out to be for naught. If no-one is going to host it, the whole revolting spectacle won’t be seen. I think it would be a brave network that would carry it as the backlash would be huge.
Hopefully,. as a consequence, this becomes a non-event. The best possible outcome, and I know many will disagree with me, is that Trump is ousted and whoever takes over will commute the death sentence to life in prison.
(In fact Trump getting ousted would solve a LOT of problems).
In the end, who really wants to see a cripple in a wheelchair blindfolded and then shot for all to see? We should be better than that.
I’d not want to be one of the military personnel chosen to shoulder that rifle, would you?
What are your thoughts on streaming being used in this manner? Let us know in the comments below.