Casey & Me: A Love Story

The Legend, @JFishSOTW, delivers another sermon that is sure to ruffle your respective feathers. Truly a well-written piece. Enjoy:

I've kind of made it a thing to go against the grain of popular opinion. It stems from an early aversion to authority, a general hate for people and an insatiable love of being an asshole. But it has also served me very well, because really, most people are very stupid and to disagree with them is to mainly be correct.

I guess that's how I fell in love with Casey Anthony.

Casey is just another in a long line of civilians who got caught up in a media storm. Now, let's get one thing straight before I continue: I don't care what you know - or more accurately, what you think you know - about her case. Because, well, that's kind of the point:

You don't know a damn thing.

And neither do I. I did not watch every second of the trial, weigh the evidence, gather opinions from eleven of my peers and ultimately have to make the decision of whether or not to send a complete stranger to the gas chamber.

The little that you and I do know points an arrow to a big, neon sign flashing the word "GUILTY". But that does not make us the jury, let alone the judge or executioner. We are merely bystanders, who are only aware of the case because Nancy Grace told us about it. And Grace wanted Anthony's head cut off from the second she heard the story, evidence be damned.

I would like to see Grace carry out the sentence herself, not by pulling a lever or injecting a needle either. The problem with our more modern and "humane" death penalties is that you separate yourself from the actual murder. Hand Nancy an axe, ask her to take the life of another. No jury, no trial. She, like many of the simple-minded peasants who are crying over Anthony's acquittal, are 100% sure the "tot mom" is guilty. They should have no problem wielding that axe.

Except, you know, they would. Because at that moment, with the gleaming blade held high above their head, they would realize that they have not really looked at the situation with the perspective and intellect necessary to lower the weapon.

Casey probably was guilty, but while humans (and especially Floridians) are dumb as rocks, they are also compassionate. Those twelve simpletons needed to be completely sure that the woman they were looking at for a month was indeed a murderer before they became murderers themselves. They couldn't pull the trigger.

It's easy for us to play armchair quarterback in these situations, but we didn't have the weight of another human's life on our shoulders. Fact is, we don't know for sure who killed Caylee Anthony. We just don't. And to pretend that just because we heard some damning evidence against her while scanning the 10:00 news, we know what really happened? C'mon now.

I assume the public will treat Casey as they did O.J.; forcing insanity by making her a public pariah. Lifting the blindfold off of Lady Justice's eye just this one time. Err, second time. Whatever. We know the truth, right?

However, I guess I can't feel too sorry for Casey. She obviously wasn't mother-material, and she will become very wealthy as a result of the media surrounding her.

Wait. A hot, young party girl with no kids and money to boot? One way ticket to Orlando, please. I'm going to Disney World!