Death Penalty - what do you think?

[Felicia]

I wasn't sure where to post this, nor am I sure if something like this has been posted before.
I personally don't support the death penalty. To give a jury the power to put a person to death, when the crime committed is murder? It seems a bit hypocritical to me.
I don't know, this is just something that had crossed my mind this morning.
If you support or condemn it....why?

[suffianr]

Yes, for rightly convicted terrorists, serial rapists, paedophiles, mass murderers, unrepentent racists, unrepentant racist paedophile serial rapist mass murderers with bombs strapped to their backsides, and all of the above...'coz they're fucking scum. Oh, and corrupt government officals, who're guilty of stealing the people's money, as well, pigs or otherwise.

[suffianr]

Btw, isn't your quote also a line in Territorial Pissings, in Nirvana's Nevermind album? :)

[Blasphemy]

"the government cannot take what it cannot restore". i think it was chekov (spelling?) who wrote this in one of his stories - The Bet. the story talks a little about the death penalty, though it isn't its main theme. he presents different opinions there. i have to agree with the quote above. the government can take and restore freedom, but it can only take life, not restore them.

[James]

The question should be asked "what is worse? Spending a long boring, horrible, disgusting life in a small damp cell. Or being killed quikely and painlessly?"

Also if the guy is killed, then it turns out they wern't guilty ; YOUR BUGGERED!!! arn't ya.

James

[Blasphemy]

by putting a person to death you are not punishing him. it will all end for him in a matter of seconds. you are punishing only his family.

[James]

Exactly.

[lenin]

read my signiture.

[pastradamus]

If u kill a human being by sentencing him /her to death,for a murder then

[/b]what the fuck makes u so much better?[b]

[Felicia]

true, I agree with that.

suffianr,
I have no clue where the quote came from, I just heard it somewhere so I looked it up to get it right.

[Blasphemy]

if anyone here watches or watched Third Watch, there was an episode in which they discussed it. Faith, the lady cop, said that if some criminal shoots a cop, and the cop's friend, in a fit of rage, chase after him and beat him to death, she can understand it. but when men and women get up in the morning, drink their coffee, go to the courthouse, sit down quietly and decide to put a man to death, that is sick.

[PunkRawker677]

NO!

how can you kill someone in order to punish them for killing someone? Thats hypocritical!

[suffianr]

Pastradamus, I don't mean to be confrontational, but have you ever heard of "an eye for an eye"?

To most of the families of rape/murder victims, no amount of justice, even the death sentence, will suffice. I know a few people who have lost family members through such circumstances, and they all tell me the same thing, "I don't care about what happens to the killer, I just want my baby back..."

From their point of view, nothing will replace the loss, not lethal injection, not the electric chair, nothing. So, why would anyone support the death penalty, if even the families of victims are indifferent to it? Even if it turns out to be nothing more than a token gesture of crude justice?

Because an example needs to be set, because society needs to have it's memory jogged, once in a while. People forget. People pretend to forget. And, sometimes, they stop caring. Once that happens, what do you do to remind them? Fill up your prisons with inumerable inmates, waiting for indefinite periods on Death Row? Drain your financial resources to support the lives of these pathetic bastards, these people who committed "youthful indiscretions" or "involuntary manslaughter" or "culpable homicide"?

Have you ever talked to anyone who'd been gang-raped? What do you think they would say if they found out that the culprit was being looked after by the state, do you think they'd ever feel safe again?

In my country, official statistics are published every year, showing how effective drug rehabs centres are, how percentages of drug-related youth problems have decreased.

Bollocks.

Most people who go to rehab end up pumping drugs into their veins barely months after release. Most rapists and sex offenders end up chasing after more young & helpless victims when they get out of jail. Ever heard of a repentant paedophile? Have you seen any roadshows or been to any seminars where paedophiles ADMIT to being paedophiles and are very sorry because they molested and raped some six year-old, once? No?

There are people who can be saved, and there are those who can't. Ultimately, it is the individual himself/herself who decides what to do...not a bunch of pro-life demonstrators, not state legislature or policies. How can people save you, if you don't want to be saved at all?

So, I would support the Death Penalty, even though it may appear barbaric or archaic. Because people need to know how wrong it is to commit certain crimes, and people need to know that sometimes, there are no second chances.

TheDeath Penalty is, as such, a just a reminder. If we took it seriously, we'd probably have less rapists and murderers, because people would think twice before murdering estranged spouses, raping five year-olds or strangling their nieces.

[Blasphemy]

an eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind.

[Needssomeconvincing]

I don't support the death penalty. Jail should be 70% rehabilitation 30% punishment not the other way around. Its more important to help people than harm them. I'll be a bit hypocritical here and say that paedophiles should burn in hell.

[Blasphemy]

there's a saying in hebrew that says that every rule has exceptions, needsomeconvinicing.

[Needssomeconvincing]

Blasphemy, when you kill someone you become a murderer but when you help someone you become a healer.
I know which on I'd prefer to be.
Do you?

[Blasphemy]

i'm not saying i agree with this saying in this particular contex. i should have had made it clear. NO ONE DESERVES TO DIE. NO EXCEPTIONS.

putting someone in prison for the rest of his life without rehabilitating him, you are killing him slowly. now, read the first part of this post and see if it answers your question.

[pastradamus]

Of course if sum1 is killed that u love then u want that person dead,but that's just uman nature.

NO DEATHS.NO EXCEPTIONS

[suffianr]

Strong arguments, ppl. It's good to see that we're all principled enough to stand by our own thoughts, but this debate is depressing me, although it's really enlightening to see that we all have differeing views, no one has really agreed on one particular angle, or conceded to another's point of view.

I respect your stand on the issue, Pastradamus. "No exceptions" is an audacious, determined and completely valid point of view. But the door swings both ways, comrade. :)