Sometimes, I really hate my home state; today is such a day. Just once, I'd like to see some headlines that doesn't make South Carolina look like it's totally populated by morons, extreme conservatives and psychopaths. Witness the story of Shaquan Duley, the mother who, in an eerie echo of Susan Smith, smothered her two sons and then drove her car into a river to make it seemed as if they young boys had drowned.
Let me clarify a few points before my coming comments: I don't know Ms. Duley, nor do I know her family or her home situation. All I know of this story, like you, gentle readers, is what I've read in the AP and seen on the news. Orangeburg is not close to me and is, in fact, around two hours south of me.
Now for the comments: There was absolutely ZERO excuse for Ms. Duley's behavior. She is 29 years old, has been a mother for five years (she has a 5 year old son who is still alive) and there's nothing that's been reported about a diminished mental capacity. She should know better. She has admitted to smothering a 2 year old and an 18 month old with her own hands, placing them in a car, driving it into the river and then lying to passers by and the police about what happened.
I hope they throw the book at her.
Children are a sacred gift. Even were they unwanted, there are many, many options that Ms. Dulay could have used to safely be rid of the children. If she would have taken the children to the nearest hospital and told them that she was thinking about hurting the children, they would have been put into protective custody pending an investigation. Bam! Problem solved.
As a fairly bleeding heart liberal, I felt a moment (and only a teeny tiny moment) of white guilt when I first heard this story. My brain immediately went into "we have failed her as a society" mode while I was reading. For that, I apologize to those two young boys. This wasn't a failure of society; this was a spoiled woman who refused to live up to the responsibility of her own actions. By bringing those children into the world, she had a responsibility to take care of them, even if it meant giving them up. By murdering those boys, she took the easy way out and my soul cries out for vengeance against her. Forget justice; there's no justice for those two boys. I want vengeance, pure and simple and I'm struggling against my long-held repulsion at the death penalty.
I need to go take a shower and brush my teeth now. The bile is making me nauseous.
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