To: President Donald Trump
President Obama: Desist from all extra-judicial killing of U.S. Citizens.
Recent revelations about the administration's guidelines for extra-judicial killing of U.S. citizens lead us to ask: Are America's ethical standards for treatment of its citizens lower than those of Imperial Rome?
According to the Book of Acts, Chapter 22, verses 25-29 (NRSV translation), Paul was about to be flogged by a Roman centurion.
“But when they had tied him up with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, ‘Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who is uncondemned?’ When the centurion heard that, he went to the tribune and said to him, ‘What are you about to do? This man is a Roman citizen.’”
[This interchange brought the torture to an immediate halt, because] “the tribune also was afraid, for he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had bound him.”
Whatever casuistry (subtle misuse of ethical principles) or sophistry (arguing to make the worse case look better) is being used by our legal experts, they should know that even ancient precedent speaks against them in this clear breach of our constitution.
According to the Book of Acts, Chapter 22, verses 25-29 (NRSV translation), Paul was about to be flogged by a Roman centurion.
“But when they had tied him up with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, ‘Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who is uncondemned?’ When the centurion heard that, he went to the tribune and said to him, ‘What are you about to do? This man is a Roman citizen.’”
[This interchange brought the torture to an immediate halt, because] “the tribune also was afraid, for he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had bound him.”
Whatever casuistry (subtle misuse of ethical principles) or sophistry (arguing to make the worse case look better) is being used by our legal experts, they should know that even ancient precedent speaks against them in this clear breach of our constitution.
Why is this important?
The protection of citizens' right to "life" is my paramount concern, as well as their right to due process. In the Book of Acts, we find that even the ancient Romans were reluctant to torture their own citizens (in this case, the Apostle Paul) without a hearing, This petition addresses current U.S. ethical standards as contrasted with those of Imperial Rome, with the hope that this might shame our government into reevaluating its policy.