Happy New Year!

First post of 2018. My, my time flies.

Just the other day, I was speaking to a staff member and she commented that she couldn't believe it was already 2018. I was in shock too. Then I said at least it's 1 year closer to retirement for everyone! She looked stunned and thought I was retiring. Of course I said I was joking, but I wish I could retire. Unfortunately, not for another 30 years.

This year, it was (and still is) unbelievably cold. A lot of the NYE events had been cancelled or scaled back because of the weather. As much as I wanted to watch fireworks, it was way too cold to wait outside to watch it.

I was fortunate enough to check out Niagara Falls during NYE and it was beautiful. Everything was frozen and just looked so wintery. Surprisingly there were still lots of people who went there for celebrations, even though it was bloody cold.

I checked out the casino as well, even though I'm not a gambler and got carded on my way in. Yay for Asian genes! I was pretty happy; it closed off my 2017 in positivity. It was pretty packed inside the casino as well. Nothing new really. I did see a Grand Buffet but didn't get a chance to check it out.

We walked around the Fallsview area for a bit, grabbing some food (yes, the money I refuse to give up is my meal money), and window shopped.

After spending pretty much the day there, we drove back home. Since it was a last minute decision to do this, the suggestion of staying a night in Niagara was difficult as prices were already sky high with NYE. Next time though.

I've been watching a lot of crime shows (and I mean a lot...it's probably a bit unhealthy) recently and with all the various degrees of crimes that are committed by people, I wish they did not abolish the death penalty here in Canada. Canada's laws are a joke. Someone who is convicted of first degree murder gets an automatic life sentence, BUT they would still get parole in 25 years. If they're a juvenile and they kill someone, they won't be convicted as an adult, so they serve 10 years in a juvenile detention centre and then get released.

What. The. Heck.

Yes, there are people who do change for the better; they made bad choices/mistakes and then they have to serve years behind bars, but they learn to become a better person, and their choices reflect that, as well as their personalities and behaviour. Then there are those who pretend that they've changed, when they haven't, get released, and commit the same crimes (if not worse). Then that's when the courts say "oh, he shouldn't have been released" or "that's weird, my assessment showed he was a low risk to reoffend".

Some people don't believe in the death penalty, because it interferes with God's plan of life or death. Humans shouldn't "speed up" the process of death by putting someone under.

After reading about various crimes (inheritance crimes, insurance fraud crimes, cheating crimes etc), I'd side with the death penalty. Especially those involved in heinous crimes, and those who show no remorse whatsoever, they deserve the death penalty. Why should we be paying for them to stay in prison forever, so that they can live out their lives in prison? What about their victims? They have no more voice to defend themselves. And especially in court when they present evidence of crimes, where victims are exposed to the bare bones, when strangers can see them at their saddest moments.

Which brings me to the death penalty techniques. The most common one is the lethal injection, a combination of 3 IV medications. I've read that they stopped supplying Sodium Thiopental to prisons because the company (Hospira, and the only supplier) did not want to be associated with lethal injections in death penalty cases. So prisons had to scramble to find another combination, which most recently they replaced with Midazolam.

The 3 IV combos don't necessarily bring a "fast" death; some are declared dead within 5 minutes, and some last until 20 minutes. Some think it's unethical that convicts suffer at the death chamber, whether it's doctors trying to find a vein or whether the medications don't have a long effect as others.

Take for example, Clayton Lockett. He was tried and convicted of murdering a 19 year old, by beating, raping then murdering her. During his execution, it was difficult finding a vein for the injection. Eventually the doctor found a line in his femoral vein and inserted the IV there. However, because there were other people watching the execution, they decided to drape his groin area with a cloth, to preserve his dignity.

Midazolam was then instilled. However, what they didn't realize was after some time, the IV had infiltrated and was no longer in the vein. While they injected the other 2 final medications (Vecuronium Bromide and Potassium Chloride), he started to convulse. The doctor initially thought he didn't get enough dosage but then again, he had no idea how much went in because the IV got dislodged in the end. Lockett died about 45 minutes after the first injection of Midazolam, convulsing and twitching, as well as trying to talk as he was dying, that something was wrong.

Considering what he had done to the 19 year old female, 45 minutes of a failed execution is what he deserved. It's not because he's of colour, or he grew up in a messed up environment. But it's because the crime he committed was heinous.

Then of course the state and organizations are all like, this is inhumane. You need to fix this and that etc. But come on. They killed, and they showed no remorse. Some laugh at their victims' families and threaten them as they walk to jail after their convictions. And somehow the State still says "well, this is inhumane for making them suffer like this on the table." Yes, sure. Tell that to all the victims' families. That's a huge slap in the face.

It would be much better if they took out the muscle relaxants and sedatives, and just straight up use potassium chloride. Not only will they suffer a cardiac arrest, but they will feel like they're burning up all over. This is nothing compared to the crimes they've committed. I really don't see why the state laws have "inhumane" and "execution" in the same sentences. It's either one or the other.

Yes true, God is the one who will judge them in the end. What we do is speed up the process of them meeting God. But to have those murderers continue to live in jail cells when they don't deserve to (and also us paying for their stay), it makes my blood boil.

In the case of Paul Bernardo, someone like him needs to be put to death, not be in jail for life. There is no amount of psychology sessions that will change who he has become: a serial rapist and murderer. He has shown no remorse, and has become the most notorious killer in Canada. See, the thing with executions is that at least we know that they're dead and they'll never escape jail. For those in life imprisonment, there's always that small chance of escape. And you always think at the back of your mind: what if?

Wow. What a way to start off 2018 by talking about executions. I have been reading and watching way too many of these shows and cases.

In positive news, Moose Knuckles jackets really does keep you warm. I went out in a t-shirt wearing this jacket, and shovelled the snow in -20C weather. I was drenched in sweat when I came back inside. I forgot if I had already talked about this, but if I did, oops.

My Gucci bag is still for sale for those that are looking for a designer bag. Still up on www.jodidayscloset.com!

Stay warm everyone. Time to sleep.