Public Execution in Japan is hard to imagine but here's an anecdote from a guy I worked with. He's a Filipine National who worked ten years in Saudi Arabia (Construction) before coming here to Samoa. He didn't like to hang around the area near the Soccer Stadium in Riyadh because of one bad experience he had there. One day, out of nowhere, a bunch of cops started rounding people up, shaking these little steel rods at them, herding them into the Stadium. It was to witness Hangings and dismemberment of the hands or feet of convicted criminals. The proceedings were in Arabic, so he didn't understand what was coming over the Loudspeakers, but the message was clear. "DON'T TRY ANY [censored]".
He said that just before the trapdoor would open, or the ax would fall, the whole arena would shout, in unison,"Something about Allah".
If you take a cold, analytical look at it, you'll see that Religion is a "tool", and a pretty effective one, at that. Cultural mores play a huge part in the moderation of Human Behaviour. For example, the "Wave", ubiquitous at Sporting Events in the US and Canada, is NEVER done in the Islamic World. Apparently it's the height of rudeness to raise your arms in public like that. Cut peoples' hands off, sure, but just don't do The Wave.
Last edited by Wolfman; 08/03/07 11:20 PM.
