I was caught up between B and C... but eventually decided "c" was too clean cut and there was SOMETHING that wasn't being said that would scare the **** out of me. I was right.

I like the old aztec (I think it was aztec?) theory that the higher you are on the power scale, the greater the punishment for your crimes. The people at the top were executed (promptly sacrificed to the gods) for almost any crime. Whereas peasants were given more leeway, and needed to do something particularly bad to warrent death.