paying peanuts for criminal acts

I am drawn to news stories that highlight the workings of the criminal justice system and especially to the stories that show the glitches in that system. Drug dealers go to prison for years and child molesters usually get months in local jails. Tonight as I was perusing the net, I read one local story about an online up and coming pedophile who was caught by one of our county's investigators BEFORE he committed an act that would have involved a 14 year old if the perpetrator had been successful in his planned hookup. It happened to be a federal crime and the bozo will now serve 233 months in a federal prison with post release supervision (parole) for the rest of his life. Because he never physically met his prey, his defense lawyer was quoted as saying something very defense lawyer-esque (read asinine) like we can't treat these guys like murderers. I don't think child predators are the population with which we want to start minimizing the need for severe punishments. They should be treated as potential murders. Speaking of Murder, who would have thought that the elderly people who survived cancer or the Korean war would be killed by eating peanut butter. Harsher penalties are needed for food companies that knowingly and recklessly send out salmonella tainted ANYTHING....Turns out CEO Parnell IS a MURDERER and now the American Peanut Corporation has filed bankruptcy and shut down to avoid having to pay wrongful death suits and class action lawsuits. Most alarming is that the charge against the corporation currently rises to the misdemeanor level. My point- We don't need to lessen penalties for sickos whose intent is to molest children and if sending out a product that has the potential to kill people who consume it can be disposed of as a misdemeanor we seriously need to look at the enforcement of Food and Drug Administration regulations. Federal Jail time and life on parole is fitting for both of these unconscionable people. I think our food source depends on it.