And your point is …?

How noble. A New Zealand woman has offered herself up for crucifixion to George Bush, if only he’ll call off the Iraq campaign.

“Send your troops home and take me instead, on behalf of everyone in the world who does not want war and oppression,” she wrote.
However, she said she would not make it easy for Bush – he would have to personally hammer in the nails.

Okay, does this person really think, in even the most rosy-hued of worlds, that this sort of grandstanding really makes a difference?

Assuming that Bush really is some sort of wild cowboy ogre, a prophet of “war and oppression” — what makes Ms Grierson think that he’d be at all interested in calling off war with Iraq, just for her singular death?

Or, for that matter, what makes her think that he wouldn’t come down, personally do the deed, laugh maniacally, and then continue on his Hunnish campaign of bloody empire-building?

On the other hand, if Bush is sincere in his belief that this is the proper course of action, and that this is the best course to alleviate the threat to millions of people, why would this change his mind?

Is she making the same offer, one must wonder, to Saddam Hussein? “Crucify me, if you will, if it will lead you to step down so that peace may reign!” No, didn’t hear anything about that. I suppose it’s because she knows it wouldn’t do any good, since Saddam has all the torture victims he needs in his dungeons, thankyouverymuch.

A noble sacrifice, Ms Grierson, is only such if it is an actual sacrifice (it’s actually likely to be made) and if it’s noble (it’s actually meaningful). Otherwise, it’s either grandstanding or stupidity.

If you really have the courage of your convictions, then go be a human shield. Break into an American military base and chain yourself to something. Or take the cue of Buddhist monks in the Viet Nam war and … well, it’s tough to crucify yourself, but choose some other tortuous way of going ahead and killing yourself. It might not make a difference, but it will at least be a sacrifice for your principles.