Justice for James

Having just watched the Tonight programme on James Bulger, and being in the process of revising for a law exam, it reminded me again of the discourse surrounding the law in this country. Venables has of course again been arrested, and while I understand why his crime hasn't been released to the media for purposes of preserving his right to a fair trial, it makes me wonder (along with everyone else) just exactly why he's still walking our streets. James' mother speculates on the Tonight programme about the rumours flying around that Venables has been spotted in Merseyside, and her worries that he could in fact have visited her house, or James' grave. Watching her talk about her son is almost harrowing, not because she is emotional or graphic in her words, but because we can all imagine what she has been made to go through, when first her son was missing, and then when his poor little body was found beaten and mutilated. I mention these things only because this is what initially made me question the decision that was made when I was just six years old. I would hope that had I committed such a crime at even that age, I would still be in prison now. On the programme, the head of the Bulger case expressed his faith in our courts and said that he believed that they would deal with Venables now, and sentence him as he deserved. Surely the public should be the judge of that?

Wrangling party wives

This is what the BBC wrote earlier today:

"In an interview with ITV1's Trevor McDonald, Samantha Cameron said he was "very strong" and a "fantastic dad".
Mrs Cameron also admitted her husband had some irritating habits and said the prospect of their life changing if he became prime minister was "daunting".
She is expected to feature on the campaign trail ahead of the election."

I was watching Sky News live this morning and coverage of the coming election is focussing on the fact that wives like Samantha Cameron are now being used as accessories to increase voters for their respective husbands. While Sarah Brown wept as her husband was interrogated last week by Piers Morgan, Samantha Cameron will feature on ITV1's Trevor McDonald tomorrow at 2215, and in the meantime the BBC are hammering away at various members of the LibDem party to get Miriam Clegg to admit if her husband is also messy. Aside from the fact that using women to target women is quite an ingenious move, people are now referring to Mrs Brown and Mrs Cameron's "endearing speeches". Do we really believe that either of these men possess endearing qualities? Or do we really care? At the end of the day, they're attempting to tug at the Great British public's unrelenting heartstrings. Good luck to them, I say.