"Razors pain you;...

Rivers are damp;
Acids stain you;
And drugs cause cramp.
Guns aren't lawful;
Nooses give;
Gas smells awful..."

It seems America's executioners are having as much trouble killing as Dorothy Parker seemed to have dying. Steve Benen notes that the current rage for lethal injection is no panacea in that regard, and has a modest suggestion.

"….back to the guillotine."

OK, not really.

"I’m being facetious, of course. I make this suggestion merely to point out that what we seek — a pleasant way to kill someone — does not exist."

Execution, even where permitted, is, thankfully, unusual. It is inherently cruel. Its value as an avenue of vengeance, it's only effective value, demands cruelty.

Again, Democratic candidates should note that John Kerry's resolute opposition to capital punishment was hardly a topic of discussion in his Presidential campaign. It's not an issue that has to be ducked. A candidate may not have to run on the issue, but a candidate needn't run from it. There's no need to equivocate. It's time to eradicate this vestige of barbarism from our culture.