RANDOM JACK POETRY HOUR: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
Commutation
California ended the death sentence
In an act of commutation
While it falls short of full repentance
California leads the nation
A government should not kill
As a punishment for crime
It goes against our higher will
It belongs to long lost times
When once we needed vengeance
To fulfill our sense of justice
That thought was always bent
When we governed with a fist
We know it does not deter
The ones who wish to kill
Though the passions it may stir
Just might provide a thrill
There once were executions
Performed like passion plays
They were thought to be solutions
But we don’t think that today
We have no other interest
But to protect and to serve
This is not the Wild West
Where they got what they deserved
We are better than we were
More civil and humane
We should honor the higher word
Not bear the mark of Cain
(Governor Newsom commutes
sentences of prisoners on death row.)
