Mata Hari

Long before there was a Madonna, and several months before there was a Cher, there was Mata Hari (nee Margaretha Geertruida Zelle MacLeod), executed by the French 93 years ago today. She probably could've showed them both a trick or two (Madonna and Cher, I mean—she was way, way too late to take credit for showing the French anything). Pretty much everyone agrees her execution was a miscarriage of justice; even if she wasn't completely innocent—let me re-phrase—even if she didn't commit the crime she was accused of, as many contend she did not, her offenses were trivial, and did not merit the ultimate punishment.

(Cher, for instance, is far more deserving. And capital punishment is still on the table...lest she forget).