did nguyen van tuong do any good?

nguyen van tuong is no more. it is a sad thing to see a young man meeting such a dreadful end. but the law is there for a purpose and the law has to take its course. without the rule of law then we will be faced with a bigger problem. we can only hope that nguyen's death is not for nothing. the issue has gained all the publicity it needed to tell the world that drug traffickers will meet death should they visit singapore. so the message is loud and clear to everyone in all corners of the globe. let us hope that nguyen will be the last drug trafficker to set foot on the island. the other issue is the death penalty. it is not the best solution and not a pleasant solution to deter a serious scourge of society. drug is not as innocent as drinking beer. the damages and pain that it can inflict on those affected are far worst than what people may think. it is best to curb it as best we can. can we substitute the deterrence of hanging with something that is more pleasant and keep drug traffickers away? would 100 strokes of the cane and life imprisonment be a better alternative? if we were to change hanging to something else that ended up encouraging more drug traffickers onto our soil, would it be worth it? now that the world knows that no drug traffickers will be spared, would it be better to keep the death penalty which, hopefully after nguyen van tuong, no drug traffickers would be stupid enough to risk visiting us. if that can be the result, then nguyen van tuong's death would have done something good. the message would finally get through the drug world that we mean business and no way they are going to wriggle their way out once they are caught. it is not a good solution or a good ending. but it is something that all of us have to live with. and so will the world have to live with the drug problem and the death penalty here. nature also has its death penalty. you toy with danger you shall die. hiv and aids are natures example of capital punishment.