tookie!

Sometimes, people just pick the wrong example for their causes. I was pretty surprised to see that Tookie Williams made the front page of Der Spiegel, because apparently there's a big outcry in Europe against his execution. This likely stems from the fact that Mr. Williams has some celebrities on his side. Of course, Michael Douglas and Snoop Dogg probably know little about the facts of Tookie's case. And this seems a bit extreme:

Some of Williams supporters have gone so far as to put his name forward as a nominee for both the Nobel Peace Prize and the Nobel Prize in Literature.

The argument these guys are making is that Tookie's role as an influential gangsta (founder of the Crips?) back in the day has made him an important actor in preventing kids from joining gangs. Some idiots even say that he has saved 150,000 kids. How exactly we could measure and know this would be an interesting proposition, if it weren't patently false (on both counts):

But gang experts dispute Williams' claims to have founded the Crips and say he has little influence over teens. Los Angeles Police Chief Bill Bratton has said that few gang members had likely heard of Williams before press coverage of his execution.

Plus, Tookie refuses to tell the cops about the Crips, because that would make him a "snitch." So this dude who won't talk about a gang that he didn't start is getting celebrity support for clemency because of an overrated influence on poor kids? Color me unimpressed. Celebrities are stupid.

I'm against the death penalty, but there are a lot of innocent people who have been executed and are on death row that make a much better case than a notorious and semi-repentant gangster.