The convention which framed the Constitution of the United States was composed of fifty-five members. A majority were lawyers-not one farmer, mechanic or laborer. Forty owned Revolutionary Scrip. Fourteen were land speculators. Twenty-four were money-lenders. Eleven were merchants. Fifteen were slave-holders. They made a Constitution to protect the rights of property and not the rights of man.  ~ Senator Richard Pettigrew – Triumphant Plutocracy (1922)

I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me to tremble for the safety of my country. As a result of war, corporations have been enthroned, and an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money power of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until all the wealth is aggregated in a few hands and the republic is destroyed. I feel, at this moment, more anxiety for the safety of my country than ever before, even in the midst of war. God grant that my suspicions may prove groundless. ~Lincoln in a letter to Col. William F. Elkins on November 21, 1864

This great and powerful force-the accumulated wealth of the United States-has taken over all the functions of Government, Congress, the issue of money, and banking and the army and navy in order to have a band of mercenaries to do their bidding and protect their stolen property. ~Senator Richard Pettigrew – Triumphant Plutocracy – Published, January 1, 1922.

It is not the fact of liberty but the way in which liberty is exercised that ultimately determines whether liberty itself survives. ~Dorothy Thompson (1894-1961) – Source: Ladies Home Journal, May 1958

A nation which can prefer disgrace to danger is prepared for a master, and deserves one! ~ Alexander Hamilton

Many people today don’t want honest answers insofar as honest means unpleasant or disturbing, They want a soft answer that turneth away anxiety. ~Louis Kronenberger – (1904-1980)

For the great majority of mankind are satisfied with appearances, as though they were realities, and are often more influenced by the things that seem than by those that are.~ Niccolo Machiavelli – (1469-1527) Italian Statesman and Political Philosopher – Source: Discourses, 1513-1517

Today as never before in their history Americans are enthralled with military power. The global military supremacy that the United States presently enjoys–and is bent on perpetuating–has become central to our national identity. More than America’s matchless material abundance or even the effusions of its pop culture, the nation’s arsenal of high-tech weaponry and the soldiers who employ that arsenal have come to signify who we are and what we stand for.  ~Andrew Bacevich in The New American Militarism

STAY! for John Marek

STAY!

Friends, The Florida Supreme Court has issued an indefinite stay of execution for John Marek who was scheduled to be killed on Wednesday, May 13, 2009.

Marek and co-defendant, Raymond Wigley were convicted of the 1983 kidnapping, rape and strangulation of Adella Simmons. Marek was sentenced to death, but Wigley received a life sentence. On Friday, the Florida Supreme Court rejected arguments that the disparity of the sentences was unconstitutional.

Today, however, the same court issued a stay in order to hear oral arguments beginning May 20 that Marek did not commit murder. Marek’s attorney, Marty McClain, introduced testimony from three men who say Wigley confessed to them that HE was the strangler, NOT Marek.

“The new evidence is very solid and the new evidence should require that Mr. Marek’ s death sentence be vacated,” McClain said.

Wigley died in prison in 2000. Ironically, he was strangled by a fellow inmate.

For more info, go to FADP’s “DP in the News”.

Per the Death Warrant signed by Gov. Charlie Crist, the execution of David Johnston for the killing of Mary Hammond remains scheduled for Wednesday, May 27 at 6:00PM. When it comes to signing Death Warrants, Gov. Crist is the decider. Please call and leave a message for Gov. Crist at 850-488-7146.

For more on contacting our governor, go to FADP’s “Take Action” page.

Please stay tuned to FADP and the FADP.org website for more info as it develops.

Shine the light …

from Mark Elliot, Executive Director of Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty

May Execution Vigils: May 13th John Marek; May 27th David Johnston

In May, the State of Florida has scheduled to kill two men.

The execution of John Marek is planned for 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 for the murder of Adella Simmons.  Gov. Crist has also signed a Death Warrant for David Johnston to be executed at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 for the murder of Mary Hammond.

A decision to kill caused this terrible tragedy…
more killing cannot repair the damage done.

As members of Pax Christi Florida witness against the executions of John Marek and David Johnston and all state-sponsored killings, we are ever mindful of the unimaginable pain and suffering which the families of Adella Simmons and Mary Hammond continue to endure. Please keep the family and friends of these women in your thoughts and prayers.

As Catholics and as citizens of this state, we are compelled to voice our unequivocal opposition to this practice of State sponsored killing.

Florida’s Catholic Bishops have concurred that the death penalty has been discriminatory toward the poor, the indigent and racial minorities. In their position statement released in January 2002, they stated,

“Capital punishment contributes to the escalating atmosphere of violence in our society and undermines belief of the inherent worth and dignity of human life.”

Take Action!

Join Pax Christi Palm Beach in an execution vigil in front of the St. Ignatius Loyola Cathedral (9500 N. Military Trail, Palm Beach Gardens) on Wednesday, May 13th from 5:45 – 6:15 p.m. during the execution of John Marek currently scheduled for 6:00 p.m. EST.

Join Pax Christi Palm Beach in an execution vigil in front of the St. Ignatius Loyola Cathedral (9500 N. Military Trail, Palm Beach Gardens) on Wednesday, May 27th from 5:45 – 6:15 p.m. during the execution of David Johnston currently scheduled for 6:00 p.m. EST.

For more information, contact Beth Cioffoletti, 561-267-7288 Email: shoofoolatte@gmail.com

May Death Warrants

Gov. Charlie Crist has signed Death Warrants for both John Marek and David Johnston. 

The execution of John Marek is planned for 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 for the murder of Adella Simmons.  Gov. Crist has also signed a Death Warrant for David Johnston to be executed at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 for the murder of Mary Hammond.

Pax Christi Florida grieves with the families of these murder victims and mourns their tragic deaths 26 years ago but our faith demands that we not allow the spiral of violence to continue. 

Contact Gov. Crist and let him know that we cannot, and will not; support these state-sponsored killings in our names. 

Pax Christi Palm Beach joins Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, and all groups working to bring an end to the death penalty in our state, in demanding swift and sure justice for ALL violent crimes.  

Florida’s Death Penalty system is neither swift nor sure.  Thousands of murders and violent crimes remain unsolved…many due to lack of funds.  These victims and their families receive NO justice and very little assistance…while at the same time huge amounts of our tax money and resources continue to be poured into this costly, unneeded relic from a barbaric past.  We call for a halt to the outrageously expensive, deeply flawed and failed experiment that is Florida’s wasteful and mistake-prone system.

We call on Governor Crist to STOP signing Death Warrants and begin a time-out on executions in order to thoroughly review and openly assess Florida’s Death Penalty system and discuss the re-allocation of the tens of millions of taxpayer dollars spent on it every year.

Call or write our Governor today!

Gov. Charlie Crist
The Capital
400 S. Monroe St.
Tallahassee, FL  32399 

Phone: 850-488-7146
Fax:  850-487-0801

Pax Christi FL urges ALL members and friends to speak up now!

In Florida’s politically-charged atmosphere, these multiple Death Warrant signings may portend a further increase in executions.  Where are our Florida leaders who appeal to what Abe Lincoln termed, “the better angels of our nature”…instead of our worst instincts? 

Death Penalty Resources 

Resources from Pax Christi

• A Service of Hope:  Prayer Service on the Occasion of an Execution 
• Breaking the Cycle of Violence: A Prayer, Study, and Action Packet on the Death Penalty
• Prayer Card: A Prayer to Abolish the Death Penalty

Resources from The Florida Catholic Conference

• Florida Bishops Asking to Close Down Death Row by Karna Swanson (Feb. 11, 2009 – Zenit: The World Seen From Rome)
• Ending the Death Penalty: What one Catholic Supreme Court Justice could do – PartI by Dale Recinella

• Ending the Death Penalty: What one Catholic Supreme Court Jusice could do – Part II by Dale Recinella
• The Death Penalty: Working for Consensus Against It (Powerpoint Presentation)
• Death Penalty Facts and Catholic Church Teaching (September, 2007)
• Written Testimony to Commission on the Administration of Lethal Injection (February 8, 2007)
• Bishop Thomas Wenski’s column on the death penalty (January, 2006)
• Death Penalty Video (English) (Spanish)
• Death Penalty Study Guide

Resources from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

• Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty Web site

Other Death Penalty Resources

• Death Penalty Information Center - up to date reports of all state and national news relating to death penalty
• I Was In Prison - faith-filled articles on life in prison; especially helpful for those in prison ministry of working on death penalty issues .