Great thread.
To weigh in on the philosophical points: I'm with Lord Foul, insomuch as I think punishment serves almost no purpose, further to that I also think capitol punishment smacks of revenge, and I believe it has no place in the justice system - we claim not to be mere animals, but as Plato put it, revenge is not justice, it's animalistic and essentially senseless. I don't claim to be above it, but I think the role of the victim's family in any trial should be be absolutely nil.
In that respect, I couldn't care less what the American's are saying about this, and although I can certainly understand the outrage certain family members are feeling - I don't hold to the same ideals. An eye for an eye is not justice in any sense to me. Given that he's terminally ill, it's a moot point where he's allowed to die. Perhaps sending him back to Libya is a touch soft (and the reception he's recieved is in bad taste), but the fact remains that he'll be dead soon.
Finally, it's worth raising the point that there are murmurs that the new appeal he was lodging would ultimately be won (i.e. he did not blow up the plane), given new evidence that would be presented proving his innocence. To avoid any possibility of his incarceration being shown to be a complete sham, and his conviction incorrect, it was decided to let him free rather than face the embarrassment of his conviction being overturned.
Also, I'd like to add, just for some context, I lived outside of a town called Dumfries in Scotland when this happened, which is only a matter of 10 miles or so from Lockerbie. My uncle lived there with his family and I have friends form there. I certainly know how the bombing affected people.
