VALLEY OF ELAH — What should have been a joyous celebration following a decisive victory over the Philistines turned to controversy, as the young shepherd boy David was condemned for executing the giant Goliath of Gath without due process.
The incident occurred at the culmination of a tense standoff between the Israelite and Philistine armies, in which the son of Jesse arrived to accept the challenge from Goliath, resulting in him defeating and beheading the giant despite the absence of a fair trial.
“You can’t just kill a guy who was threatening to destroy your entire nation,” said Hilkiah of Jezreel, a human rights advocate. “We live in a civilization that is ruled by laws. Goliath may have been up to no good, yes, but no one is allowed to just stop him without giving him due process first. There are proper protocols for these types of situations, not just slinging a stone into the guy’s forehead and chopping his head off with his own sword. This David guy isn’t the world’s policeman.”
When it was pointed out that Goliath intended to kill every man, woman, and child in Israel, Hilkiah remained opposed to his execution. “That’s still not a reason to take this type of action,” he said. “You’re supposed to wait until he actually does something really horrible, then apprehend him alive, file charges, and go through a long, drawn-out process in hopes of administering some type of insufficient justice. Go as easy on him as possible. That’s the right way.”
At publishing time, a human rights advocacy group had organized a protest after hearing people sing about how “Saul has killed his thousands, and David his ten thousands” without granting any of them due process.
Tony asks questions about everything in his life. Is he a crazy conspiracy theorist?
