> > With the way the American public is so
> > gung-ho over "reality" lately, how long might it
> > be before grisly war imagery and public
> > executions become popular TV? That's not a
> > threshold I'd like to see us as a nation cross.
>
> I don't know if that would happen, but it seems possible. At the same time, it seems we're a little sheltered from our actions. It's much easier to support a war when it seems distant; harder to support it when you see the bodies of innocent civilians killed by your military's actions. Likewise the death penalty (which does manage to take the lives of people who are innocent, as the justice system is not and cannot be perfect). We bear responsibility for the actions of our government, and I feel like we get off a little easy by just allowing the faceless system to take care of our dirty work without having to inspect or really deal with the ramifications of those actions.
>
> Stephen

Back when beheading was popular over here, it was a major spectacle, with families travelling hundreds of miles to witness the execution of King James I, for example. And the lucky ones managed to buy a lock of his hair as a souvineer afterwards. When the Salem witches were executed, that was also a major tourist attraction, as I understand it.

I don't think that we're so far separated from execution as entertainment.

wintermute