Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Pphnlon (WEST) OFa , (ssLpru4oDN " West Folkows Conscience The Veto Statement Editor's Note: Just in case you missed Governor West's veto message of the death penalty bill, here is the complete text again from the Associated Press. He said it as well as it could be said, but his plea went unheard by the legislature. Mr. President and Members of the Senate: I respectfully and regretfully return to your Honorable Body without my approval S. 270. It has been a matter of satisfaction anlpride that during the four legislative sessions in which I have served as your Governor, I have not vetoed a single act passed by you except those held to be un constitutional by a written opinion of the Attorney General. I had hoped to be able to complete my term with that record unbroken. Unfortunately, S. 270, dealing as it does with the subject of life and death, requires me, regretfully , to depart from that precedent. As a matter of personal conviction I cannot accept the premise that man can end a life that God has created. I recognize, of course, that Society has not only a right, but a duty, to protect its members from harm by individuals who violate the principles of law developed over the centuries as a part of our Hebraic-Christian heritage. Whether or not a necessary part of that protection involves punishment of the offender to the extent of taking his life is the issue raised by S. 270. Punishment of offenders including whippings, public torture, the rack and the screw have all been part of man's attempt to regulate and deter criminal behavior over the course of history. Today, none of these punishments exists in any civilized country of the world. All have been discarded because they failed to accomplish their objectives. Man's accumulated wisdom gained from centuries of human experience today rightly rejects physical torture as either a proper punishment or an effective deterrent. Regardless of the means employed, the ultimate in physical punish ment is, in my judgement, execution of a human being. On the basis of all of the evidence available, it is clear that executions do not serve as a deterrent to capital offenses. In the year 1934, at a time when South Carolina had a death penalty and was executing offenders, the State's homicide rate per. 100,000 persons was 24.9. In 1972, in the absence of capital punishment and nine years after the last execution had been carried out in the state, the homicide rate had declined to 16.8 per 106,000 population. Similarly, it can be shown that instat eswith the death penalty, the mean homicide rate between the years 1934 and 1967 (the year of the last execution in the nation) was 5.7 per 100,000 population. In states which did not have capital punishment, the mean homicide rate for the same period was 2.3, or less than half the average of the death penalty states. Reinstitution of the death penalty in South Carolina would not -- in my opinion, and in the view of the above stated information -- serve as a deterrent to crime, but would rather be a return to a barbaric, savage concept of vengeance which should not be accepted, condoned or.permitted in a civilized society. Therefore, I veto S. 270. "-John C. West The Gamecock i Lette To the Editor: In reply to your editorial in The Gamecock, June 27, 1974, page 4, "The American Dream, Gone Awry," I would like to answer all allegations, but because of limited space, will comment only briefly on the cartoons. 1. Internal governmental decay -- There have been "proven", and I would like to repeat that word, "proven", corrupt officials before.. To name a few: Harding, -teapot dome,- and New York State Supreme Court Justices. I am reserving my judgement of Nixon until after adjudication, if any. I do think that he is either very corrupt or one of our best presidents. You can't have cake and eat it too. In 1969, people wanted out of Vietnem and no draft. Our criticism of Nixon i s like using ACC referees in a Pro game and not telling the home team. 2. The drive-in funeral parlor -- Read "The Loved One." If people are willing to want pet burials and drive-in funerals, why blame businesses. 3. Eating dog food - Scene: Man, wife and two children plus one dog eating dog food for supper. My question is why the two children and one dog.??? Children and pets are luxuries. If you can't afford them, don't have them Let your brain determine your likes, not your glands. John Rockhoz Ed. And in reply to your allegations: I. Internal government decay We never said that there had not been other "cot rupt" officials before, because there certainly have been. We only attempted to make the case that President Nixon's administration has shown itself to be the most corrupt to date. Besides, past corruption does not excuse present corruption. Your analogy: "criticism of Nixon is like using ACC referees in a pro game and not telling the home team," is quite incomprehensible Abraharr John,i Editor's Note: Another tragedy I again struck by an assassins' bullet Associated Press, of how some reacte The reaction to Sunday's slaying i came swiftly from public officials, Atlanta's police chief, the target of ri Mrs. King,, the mother of slain Luther King, Jr., was shot to deatd worship service at the Ebenezer Bap1 Maynard Jackson, Atlanta's first I "an unspeakable tragedy." It's as if the King family is beinl shaken. "I've never seen a family s loves that family; the nation loves rs To The political corruption to -sports seems inherently trite. 2. The drive-in funeral parlor We never blamed businesses for the "drive-in" funeral parlor, though perhaps we should have. Evidently, you subscribe to the idea that businesses merely respond to the demands of the public. However, we don't agree completely. According to economist John Kenneth Galbraith, the public is enticed, and desires created by modern advertising . and marketing techniques. Read "The Affluent Society " - we're still looking for "Tbe Loved One." 3. Eating dog food-You say "children and pets are luxuries." Well, we feel that statement is elitist crap. Necessities and luxuries are not standards that exist alone, they refer to com parative differences in living standards. Evidently, you see luxuries as being those "things" which barely sustain life. Why don't you try it sometime. Try it while those around you have mansions, three cars, swimming pools, college educations, wives, children and pets. As we said in our original editorial, "... then perhaps you have become innocuous to the steady stream of reactionary, over-capitalistic propaganda generated by the old 'rags to riches' crowd." "Cruel Reminder" To the Editor: Lt. Calley was sentenced to life imprisonment for murdering civilians in Viet Nam. This massacre involved three com panies of men, My Lai was only one village that experienced mass murder. Ask West moreland -- many american soldiers are confined in heinous federal peniteniaries because they refused to participate in the Vietnamese mistake. Thousands of U.S. Army veterans marched in Washington on July 4th, 1974, in a plea for unconditional am nesty. The 300,000 who resisted and deserted can't all be wrong. We granted amnesty to the Germans, Japanese and Italians. Even the Damn Yankees didn't ,Martin, md... las occurred. The King family . Here is the account, from the d to the murder of Mrs. Kirg. >f Mrs. Martin Luther King, Sr., civil rights leaders and from .cent black protests. civil rights. leader Dr. Martin i by a black gunman during a ist church in Atlanta. olack -mayor called the shooting S tested," said Jackson, visibly uffer so much tragedy. The city that family." litor hang Robert E. Lee. Amnesty means forget. Retribution is a cruel reminder. Let's hang it up. Speak up for amnesty. Please consider the plight of the young man in Sweden - the boy who six years ago was not a conscientious objector, *but a specific moral objector to massacres of civilians such as happened at My Lai. He did not commit any overt crime such as breaking and entering. Why should Jeb Stewart Magruder be in minimum security at a Penn sylvania Farm Prison while those denied amnesty be sen tenced to the dehumanizing in carceration Qf Leavenworth? The only way to improve our prison system is to abolish the penal elite! I cannot sleep knowing where Lew Simon is. My son will surely be next because the Swedish govenment is so punitive at this time for financial reasons. Please help. We need you. Name withheld by request. Ed. We empathize with your plea for understanding and ac ceptance of amnesty. We don't see the issue as merely forgiving those who erred, but rather ac cepting back into society men whose conscience dictated that they not be party to a war turned universal tragedy. Majorettes, Now, Bachelorettes To the Editor: In this age of sexual discrimation, we find it carried to its furthest extreme in the area of degrees, specifically the ac cumulation of the knowledge we have pursued. In this pursuit, we have sought the ability to equalize while attempting to ameliorate original jurisdiction over discriminatory attitudes. In the interest of maintaining this equalization, we suggest the offering of a Bachelorette of Arts or Science, a Mistress degree, and a Doctorette of Philosphy. There is only one way to face this