The Sensible Solution

Last week, another of our citizens was taken from us, and to no real purpose.

Ray Blatterson, a manager for the Ohio trucking firm Safe-T Transport, was sentenced to forty years behind bars. Blatterson had a running feud with his crosstown rival, Stephen Rigg, which had grown increasingly bitter as the economy slumped. Thanks to the nation's lax gun laws, on Monday, July 13, Blatterson was able to obtain a Glock 19 at a legal gun dealership. He crossed the city in one of his company’s trucks, walked into the offices of Nation’s Best Trucking, and fatally shot Rigg at his own desk.

It was the very first time Blatterson had murdered anyone, yet thanks to the judge's sentencing this week, he will most likely die in prison.

It’s time we face up to an important truth: the war against murder has failed.

Last month, thousands marched on the capitol, demanding that the government decriminalize murder, and they were right to do so. Never has it been so clear that all of our efforts and legislation attempting to control (and even end) murder have proven useless. Thousands upon thousands of police are on the streets; every state has the strictest laws against homicide; yet the killings continue. When will Congress realize that, no matter how Draconian your laws, you cannot stop people from doing what they want to do and think is right?

Murder has been a natural part of life since the dawn of mankind. Every major civilization has had murder, and those individuals who accepted this managed to live normal, even exemplary lives. From the kingdoms of Europe to the empires of the Americas, from tribes in Africa to clans in the Far East, this inevitable feature of life has always been with us. Anger is as natural to mankind as laughter.

However, early in our history, political and business interests decided that murder was a threat to America’s industry. Unregulated killing could eat into their precious profit margins. Thus began a campaign to spread fear and paranoia, fanning the flames of moral outrage of politicians beholden to special interests until murder was illegal across the nation. Pulpits rang with righteous indignation against the simplest and most understandable of killings. Murderers—even those who had been a threat to almost no one—had to hide their desires and activities, driving them underground.

Now, we’re faced with an epidemic. In 2007, the latest year for which statistics are available, there were over 16,000 murders in this country, and those who committed these understandable acts are languishing in prison, contributing little or nothing to society. Studies show that they are most likely learning new criminal behavior from the other inmates, refining their “murder” skills and making connections with larger criminal elements. Someone who might have begun as a fairly innocent 3rd degree offender might leave jail ready and able to take out an elementary school.

It’s time we legalize murder. After all, in a society in which blood sports and “extreme fighting” competitions are sanctioned (resulting in untold numbers ending up in hospitals and suffering through agonizing recovery every year), why is this one activity singled out for special treatment? Can you honestly allow the death penalty, but somehow hypocritically condemn the individual’s right to the same freedom the government enjoys? What kind of socially conflicted society allows the hunting of all animals save man?

When murder is illegal, then only criminals murder. Anyone who wants to take the life of another right now must sneak around, plotting in secret, living in constant fear of being caught. Under the current regulations, not only is the freedom of the murderer taken away, but others are put at risk. Since the murderer is often doing his work under cover of darkness, trying to avoid the ridiculous legal restrictions on his legitimate desires, he may come upon friends or family members of the real target, making them incidental targets as well. The concerned (or nosy) neighbor who chooses to investigate may also find herself in dire straits. And this is not even taking into account the law enforcement officials, potential witnesses, and dozens of others who must put themselves in danger to continue cranking the outmoded wheels of the legal process.

With murder criminalized, killing remains in the hands of the worst of our society: violent gangs and deranged psychopaths. Assassins and so-called “hit men” make a tidy profit by providing murder services. The “black market” price for murder is astronomical, and it is in these elements' interests to keep it illegal. When such thugs and lawbreakers are in favor of something, can any right-thinking citizen support it?

If murder was legalized, the government could regulate it, ensuring that only the chosen victim faced his potential killer, and that in a secure and contained environment. People are going to murder anyway—why not make it as safe and open as possible? And with the possibility of televising the events, corporate sponsorship, and a new “murder tax,” we might even manage overcome our current economic slump and provide revenue for our struggling state and local governments.

Right now, billions are spent each year on police officers, federal agents, and the entrenched interests of the law enforcement industry. Yet there is not one reliable, verified estimate of the number of murders that have actually been prevented. We would not put up with a track record like this for any private corporation, and we shouldn’t allow such inefficiency in our government, either.

Some argue that legalizing even the simplest murders will lead to the legalization of worse crimes: serial killing, mass slaughter, and even genocide. These slippery slope arguments are only fear-mongering at its worst. No one can prove that these would ever occur, and surely lawmakers and citizens of conscience could craft laws that allowed personal, small-scale murder but kept the most dangerous bombings and terrorist acts illegal.

Meanwhile, anyone who murders even just one person ends up in prison for decades, sometimes for life. “My husband is a good man, a good father,” Blatterson’s wife, Cindy, stated in a tearful press conference after his sentencing. “You can’t imagine a more responsible murderer than Ray. There are so many others Ray could have killed, but he knew how to keep his temper in check. The court has taken away my husband, a wonderful father, and our sole support simply because of these idiotic laws…” She then broke down, unable to continue.

“Mr. Blatterson is no monster,” stated Blatterson's lawyer, Shane Williams, at the same press conference. “There were nineteen bullets in that gun—nineteen—and yet Ray only shot one man. If that isn’t control, I don’t know what is. While madmen are running free in our streets, gunning down dozens of victims without rhyme or reason, this relatively harmless individual, responding to a perfectly natural urge, is nabbed and thrown into a cage to prove some kind of point. A great injustice has been committed here.”

Evan Talbot, spokesman for the Organization for the Sane Murder and End-of-Life Regulation (SMER), stated, “Ray Blatterson is the real victim here. When will the government get out of people’s private business? You cannot regulate morality, but lawmakers and conservative groups continue to attempt to curtail our freedoms, trying to force everyone to live by their outdated and narrow-minded definitions of right and wrong. We must fight these unwarranted restrictions at every turn, and SMER will be at the forefront of that fight.”

What isn’t to like about legalizing murder? We will reduce crime rates, put an end to the criminal monopoly over the industry, allow government regulation, raise revenues, and put an end to the senseless curtailment of personal freedoms so rampant under the previous administration. The proven benefits of murder—stress relief, free expression, population control—far outweigh the terrible consequences of forcing thousands (if not millions) into illegal activity. The billions of dollars we’ve poured into fighting the problem have proven useless: no matter how many small-scale “murderers” are thrown into prison, murders continue each and every day. Victim apologists, big business, and entrenched bureaucrats may object, but it’s time we came to our senses and did the right thing.