Blog Stage Four

I read an article recently titled, I Shot a Man in Houston Just to Watch Him Die on Eileen Smith's blog, In The Pink. In the article, Smith is arguing against Texas's Castle Doctrine which was extended in 2007.

The Castle Doctrine is also known as Stand Your Ground, and according to Smith the number of “justifiable killings” in Texas has raised over from 32 in 2006 to 48 in 2010. Before, Texas already allowed the use of deadly force against intruders, thieves and teens breaking curfew but you were required to retreat when possible. Now, you no longer have to.

Smith’s opposition to this is clearly stated. She finds it ridiculous that people are now able to get away with something as serious as shooting another person thanks to this doctrine. To support her views on how ridiculous the doctrine is, Smith relays an equally-ridiculous recent story about a man who owned a taco truck in Houston. A twenty-four year old stole his tip jar from the truck, which had a whole twenty dollar in it, and the truck owner proceeded to chase him down and shoot him in the back. And according to this doctrine, that is a “justifiable killing.”

Smith puts up a good argument and I for one was completely sold on her argument. What was most persuasive about her argument was how she actually gave an example of a recent event that was supported by The Castle Doctrine. Now only did she explain how ridiculous she thought the doctrine was, she showed an example of how ridiculous it actually was in our society.

I believe Smith’s intended audience is younger liberal-minded people. She uses a lot of humor and sarcasm to support her very liberal views on the topic.