POLL!: Death Penalty

[Lemonboy]

For or Against!!??

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"Master of sexual innuendo"

"PLEBA Mansion Bootler"

"Proud member of the U2 gender"

[Screaming Flower]

AGAINST!

[Anthony]

AGAINST!

Killing them deprives them of suffering, which is true justice... don't grant them the easy way out!


Ant.

[Achtung Bubba]

For, with the qualification that it is probably like the a standing army, firearms, and the government itself: a necessary evil.

[KhanadaRhodes]

Originally posted by Achtung Bubba:
For, with the qualification that it is probably like the a standing army, firearms, and the government itself: a necessary evil.

i agree.

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you bury your treasure where it can't be found, but your love is like a secret that's been passed around...
ME!

[This message has been edited by KhanadaRhodes (edited 02-11-2002).]

[Rono]

Against.

[joyfulgirl]

against

[anitram]

Against.

[U2morrow]

I used to be wicked for it but then I grew up. (Not a jab at anyone else's beliefs. That is simply what I feel happened in my case.)

[mug222]

Against

While I believe that someone who has deprived another of life should themselves be deprived of life, if there is just ONE innocent person who is wrongfully executed then the death penalty should be forever abolished. Since it is a known fact that far more than 1 person has been wrongfully executed (and accepting the imperfections of our judicial system) I believe the death penalty has no place in our society.



[This message has been edited by mug222 (edited 02-07-2002).]

[unforgettableFOXfire]

People are going to be all up in arms, but lets face it... Prisions are crowded enough, and with DNA evidence, if someone murders someone(s) then theyre pretty much fucked. No, two wrongs dont make a right, and yes 'thou shalt not kill' Im aware of that. But, in this capitalist society, who in the grander scheme of things really gives a rats ass about someones right to live if theyve terminated that right from someone else, and who wants to pay those extra tax dollars for keeping them fed and maintained for the rest of their life? I dont think its right, but I think its necessary. Prision is all about rehabilitating people, but why incarcerate someone who is incapable of being rehabilitated? People that kill, more often then not, sofaras trends go, dont go hey I did a bad thing, let me walk old ladies across the street in feeble attempt to repent for my actions. It just doesnt happen.
Firing squads, as "cruel" as they might be, are probably the best idea, imho. Lets just think ab it. You hire out a small part of the military for the prision system, people trained to kill. You give 10 people guns, and give 8 of them blanks, and 2 a live round. They shoot the person in the head, they die near instantly, and the squad doesnt know which one killed the prisioner. Then noone feels morally outraged, plus if theyre in the military, their job is to kill, so if they feel bad ab it then they shouldnt have enlisted. Just one possible solution, nobody flips a switch, nobody injects anything, nobody feels guilty. I still dont think its right mind you, Im just attempting to make a feasible justification for it.

[FizzingWhizzbees]

Resolutely against.

It is the ultimate inhumane punishment. It is a violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

It is irreversible and as no country in the world can claim to have a judicial system which is entirely infallible, there will inevitably be cases in which innocent people are sentenced to death.

There is no evidence that the death penalty acts as a deterrent to crime. It is applied disproportionately against people of "ethnic minorities".

And in my opinion, no society which sanctions the murder of its citizens, no matter what crime they stand accused of, can consider itself civilised. (this is my opinion, the preceding statements were facts.)

[FizzingWhizzbees]

Originally posted by ~unforgettableFOXfire~:
No, two wrongs dont make a right, and yes 'thou shalt not kill' Im aware of that. But, in this capitalist society, who in the grander scheme of things really gives a rats ass about someones right to live if theyve terminated that right from someone else, and who wants to pay those extra tax dollars for keeping them fed and maintained for the rest of their life?

I still dont think its right mind you, Im just attempting to make a feasible justification for it.

I'm just posting this because you commented that you were trying to justify the death penalty, and I wanted to say that actually the costs of keeping someone incarcarated for life are less than the cost of executing someone, so it isn't really a justification.

If you don't think the death penalty is right then why try to justify it? I'm not saying this as a criticism, I'm just curious about why you feel like this.

[martha]

Against.

[U2Bama]

I float back and forth on it.

I don't think I could ever execute someone, but I WOULD kill someone in self defense or in defense of family, friends, or even a helpless stranger if that's what it takes to save their life.

I will never campaign against it because I do think it provides closure for the victims' survivors, and it is not for me personally to get in there and tell them they can't have closure (especially when they KNOW the convict's guilt for sure). But at the same time, I will always have reservations due to the possibility of someone being wrongfully convicted and put to death.

As a side note, Alabama's Democratic governor, Don Siegleman, is proposing the death penalty for repeat sex offenders.

~U2Alabama

[unforgettableFOXfire]

Originally posted by FizzingWhizzbees:
I'm just posting this because you commented that you were trying to justify the death penalty, and I wanted to say that actually the costs of keeping someone incarcarated for life are less than the cost of executing someone, so it isn't really a justification.

If you don't think the death penalty is right then why try to justify it? I'm not saying this as a criticism, I'm just curious about why you feel like this.

Could I perhaps ask for some financial numbers here, since youre telling me its cheaper to pay for food, maintenence, medical needs for a patience over the course of 25-50 years then it is to take one round of live ammunition and execute them.

Based on society, the fact that people dont give a rats ass about the common man, and that everything is about efficiency, thats why I feel this way. I think its wrong to take away someones life, noone has the right to do that, but from a political standpoint if it is in the best intrest of the government to save taxpayer dollars, then thats a viable path for them to take.

I agree with your statement about no country sanctioning execution of its citizens can call itself civilized. Throughout history though, countrys have been on the cutting edge, been highest power in the world, been "civilized" for the time, and still executed people. You could banish them, lock them up and throw away the key and forget they exist, secretly kidnap them and take them off somewhere and kill them where noone will ever see... But its always been done, and as long as people are people, then it probably will be done somewhere. Im not granting that as an excuse, but I am saying that whether we like it or not its going to happen. If the people of the nation dont like the way the government is dealing with it, then some radical is going to go and kill the person who everyone felt should have been executed anyway. May as well do it in a professional manner in a controlled environment rather than have a messy and brutal attack on the streets or in an apartment building where children and innocents may be forced to veiw it...

I still hate the fact that people take the lives of others, but it happens, it needs to be controlled, one way or another. I by no means think I cleared anything up with what Ive said, probably just raised more questions, Ill try again perhaps to make myself more coherant if its necessary.

[popsadie]

AGAINST....but I admit that the recent Timothy McVeigh trial in my state had me wavering for a bit. I actually am a member of OCADP...Oklahoma Coalition against the Death Penalty...and many of my fellow members protested during that trial. I was actually studying abroad last year and thus never had to face that issue. I do believe that it is an unfair practice that produces a final, irreversible effect on what is sometimes an innocent human being. I have attended death penalty trial in the past and the injustice I have seen makes me want to place a moratorium on this practice, but I admit to being undecided about my feeling regarding the McVeigh hearings....

[camiloj]

Against. I tend to go along the "two wrongs dont make a right" philosophy with this...

But I will add that I am not strongly against it, just in belief. When I let my emotions get the best of me, I fool myself into thinking I am for it.

[Peaseblossom]

Originally posted by Achtung Bubba:
For, with the qualification that it is probably like the a standing army, firearms, and the government itself: a necessary evil.

Dittos. Were we separated at birth or something?

[bonovista]

Totally for it...Thanks.