1. United States
2. Tenn.
3. Letter

Speak out now against the Pentagon's plan to livestream the firing squad execution of Nidal Hasan on December 3. This is not justice — it's a spectacle. The U.S. abandoned public executions nearly a century ago precisely because they turned into circuses. Putting one on the internet doesn't modernize the practice; it globalizes the barbarism. Even members of your own party agree. Sen. Thom Tillis called the livestream "beyond disgusting." Sen. Jack Reed called it "a gift to anti-American terrorist recruiters." The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops called it "a barbaric promotion of a culture of death." When that coalition is aligned, the answer is obvious. Public executions are what authoritarian regimes use to intimidate populations — not what a democracy does. Your silence on this is a choice. I expect you to publicly demand that the Pentagon reverse this decision before December 3. If you won't stand up against livestreaming a man's execution for public consumption, I have to question what you will stand up for.